Anywhere You Go
by themightypookums
Summary: It's the last year of high school and there's a new kid in South Park. He's a bit odd, a bit mysterious, and he's instantly caught Kyle's attention. The past was not easy on either one of these two, but maybe the future could be different? Kyle's first true romance can either end one of two ways: happily ever after or tormenting heartbreak. KyleXOC smut! Rated M.
1. Chapter One: First Meeting

**My SECOND fanfic! A KyleXOC romance.**

 **First chapter? Dry as all hell, but it will get better, I promise!**

* * *

 **Chapter One**

"Kyle!" Sheila Broflovski yelled from the bottom of the stairs of the two-story house. "Bubbie, Stan is here!"

Kyle sighed inwardly. He hated that nickname. Seven years and he still couldn't get rid of it. His mom was stubborn. No matter how many times he told her to stop, she'd still pinch his cheek and repeat the nickname with her wide smile. He ruffled his red hair. One thing he was happy about was how it changed over the eight years. It became darker, like an auburn colour. He curls hadn't tamed but his new undercut style made it look more stylish than disheveled.

"Kyle!" Sheila screamed.

Kyle rolled his emerald eyes dramatically. "Coming ma!" he yelled back.

He took one last look at himself in the full-length mirror. His collared shirt and cargo shorts were enough for the unusual Colorado summer heat. He quickly raced down the stairs to the main level. Stan stood by the door. His hands were shoved into the pockets of his jeans. He wore a black, form fitting t-shirt that showed off his muscles from the past few years of football and weight lifting.

"Dude, take any more time?" he said, his dark eyebrow lifted playfully.

"Shut up," Kyle replied with a smile as he pulled on his sneakers.

Stan had lost his blue puffball toque to let his raven coloured hair rest messily on his head. He would wear a similar blue hat at times in the winter time, bringing a sense of nostalgia back to Kyle whenever he saw his best friend wear it.

"You ready to go now, Princess?" Stan joked when Kyle finished tying his shoes.

Kyle punched his friend's shoulder as hard as he could but he knew it did nothing against the muscles under his friend's skin. "Kyle," Sheila spoke up from the doorway to the kitchen as she held onto a drying towel. "Make sure you're back by midnight, young man."

"Mom," Kyle groaned.

"Don't whine at me, Kyle Broflovski," Sheila replied in a threatening tone. Kyle kept his back facing his mother as he rolled his eyes. He knew she'd have his ass red if she saw it. "Midnight. No later."

"Mom, I'm not a kid anymore, come on," Kyle explained as he turned to face his mother.

"You may not be, but you are still under my roof. While you are under my roof, you live by my rules," Sheila explained as she pointed a chubby finger at her son.

Stan's hand clamped down on Kyle's shoulder before he could speak. Stan knew the argument could and would go on for hours if he let it. The mother and son were both equally stubborn. "Don't worry, Sheila, I'll have him back by midnight. I have to be back home by then anyways," he explained.

" _What a liar,"_ Kyle thought to himself.

"See Kyle? I'm not the only mother looking out for her son's wellbeing," Sheila said, her hands on her wide hips.

Kyle groaned as he turned. The two boys left the house to start down the street. "She's so overprotective! Gah, I can't deal with it anymore!" Kyle snapped as he kicked at a small stone with the toe of his shoe.

"She just cares about you. Be happy she's not like Butters' parents," Stan explained, his hands still shoved into the pockets of his jeans.

Kyle groaned and then exhaled loudly. "Yeah, okay. You have a point," he replied in a low mumble. He hated when Stan became the smart, logical one. An arm snaked around Kyle's shoulders and he was almost thrown off balance as his friend pulled him closer to him. "Let's just try to have some fun tonight. It's the last party before the last year of our high school career. After this year, everything changes."

Oh, how right he was.

"Hey, look," Stan said as he elbowed Kyle from his thoughts. They had been walking in peaceful silence, something Kyle loved about his long-time friendship with the Marsh boy. Kyle stopped along with Stan to turn and looked across the street a few blocks from the Broflovski house. A large moving truck was parked in the driveway of a bungalow with a For Sale sign out front that had been covered with a SOLD sticker. "New neighbours."

Kyle's focus was on the black muscle car parked next to the curb. He didn't know shit about cars but it was awesome. It had white stripes along the hood and roof and wide rims.

"What do you think?" Stan asked. "Crazy? Lame? Serial killers?"

"All of the above?" Kyle added with a grin.

Stan chuckled and continued down the street towards Stark's pond. Kyle moved to follow but stopped when he saw someone hop from the back of the moving truck. Their head was hidden behind the box they carried but Kyle's attention was caught by the two very distinctively coloured bracelets worn on their wrist. They were handmade like something an elementary school student would make.

"Kyle, let's go! We're gonna be late for the party," Stan called back over his shoulder.

Kyle quickly chased after his friend. It was dark by the time the two boys reached Stark's pond. Kenny's truck was parked not to Token's SUV he borrowed from his parents as music blared from the truck and the backs opened to the break in the trees where a large bonfire lit up the area crowded full of students from Kyle and Stan's grade. Stan moved past the back of Kenny's truck with Kyle behind him who stopped when he was suddenly grabbed by the shoulder.

"Kyle!" Kenny yelled drunkenly.

"Hi Kenny," Kyle replied with a small smile. It didn't surprise him that alcohol was present even though Stan promised him there wouldn't. No doubt the back of Kenny's truck was full of whatever alcohol you could think of.

Kenny grinned and hummed as he leaned over the side of his truck from inside the flatbed. The hood of his orange sweater fell off his head to reveal his messy, long dirty blonde hair. Kyle ruffled it with a small laugh that made Kenny giggle.

"Are you two done over there?" Stan asked with a flat tone.

"Stanley!" a shrill voice sang over the loud music.

Stan's face brightened at the sound of the voice. He quickly spun around just as the brunette flung herself into his arms. Their lips crashed against each other, literally, and Kyle rolled his eyes. Wendy was drunk. She carried a red solo cup that she almost spilled over when her arms flung around her boyfriend's neck. Kyle took a quick step back out of the splash zone. Kenny almost fell out of his truck without being held up by Kyle anymore.

"Wow, okay, you are drunk," Stan said with a small chuckle.

"Yup!" Wendy said loudly and pushed her drink to Stan's chest. "Catch up!"

Wendy turned to skip off into the crowd and Stan followed without hesitation. Kyle jumped when a large brown bottle was dangled in front of his face. "Kyyyyle!" Kenny sang as he held the bottle's top between his fingertips.

"What's that?" Kyle asked, an eyebrow turned up quizzically.

"Liquid courage," Kenny replied drunkenly.

Kyle rolled his eyes and swatted the bottle away as he passed by. He wandered through the crowd of drunk students not old enough to be drinking observing the sights. Clyde had Bebe pinned against a tree as they wrestled tongues. Token played a bass quite poorly by the bonfire as people surrounded him. Kenny was handing out booze from the back of his truck. Kyle stopped on the opposite side of the bonfire and tilted his head slightly. A tall boy was leaned over a leaner blonde who had his eyes closed. It took Kyle a moment to realize it was Craig and Tweek. Craig had his face pressed to Tweek's neck as Tweek tried hard to bite back the soft whimpers he wanted to make. His body was shaking violently. Kyle scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Perverts," he muttered.

"Hi, Kyle," a sweet voice sang behind him.

He quickly turned around and smiled. The blonde-haired girl in a navy-blue jacket with blue-grey jeans stood a few feet away. The glow from the bonfire lit up the side of her face, highlighting her slightly blushed cheeks, made by the alcohol that coursed through her system.

"Hey, Emily. How was your summer?" Kyle asked, making nice with the girl he rarely ever spoke with.

Emily hummed quietly and took a step forward. "Uneventful," she answered. Kyle could smell the vodka on her breath. "Yours?"

Kyle shrugged his shoulders. "Pretty much the same," he answered. He was uncomfortable but he didn't want to seem rude.

"It's warm here, why don't we stand over there?" Emily asked as she pointed a finger in the direction of a large tree away from the crowd but still within the soft glow of the bonfire. She turned to start walking and Kyle sighed. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his shorts and followed her to make sure she wouldn't trip over her heels as she walked with shaky steps.

"Emily, are you alright?" Kyle asked worriedly as she pressed her back against the large tree.

Emily giggled into her hand. "Has anyone told you how hot you got over the years, Kyle?" she asked. Kyle's cheeks instantly reddened in embarrassment. "You've really grown into yourself, Kyle."

Kyle heart pounded heavily in his chest. Sure, he had gotten taller, not as tall as Stan though. He had a new hairstyle and his skin was a touch darker, but not much else had changed. He was still thin, bony even, and he had freckles all along the tops of his cheeks and his nose.

Kyle froze when Emily's fingers locked through his belt loops and she pulled him forward. His hands shook at his sides. Emily leaned forward, keeping her fingers locked around the loops. He squeezed his eyes shut.

" _No! Nono!"_ he screamed in his mind and quickly took a step back.

Emily's fingers let go. Kyle shook his head frantically and he turned to quickly rush through the crowd to get away. His head was spinning and he felt sick to his stomach. Kenny was sitting on the side of his truck's flatbed handing two beers to Clyde when he noticed Kyle. His eyebrows knitted together as he watched the red head weave through the crowd and take off quickly down the street away from the party. Kenny hummed quietly to himself and slowly shook his head.

The hallway of the school was loud with chatter. Day one of the last year had begun. Kyle woke feeling groggy and unmotivated. He trudged to the bus stop with Stan where Cartman stood waiting. He was still fat and evil with a signature, "Hey Fags!" greeting when the two friends approached.

"Ignore him," Kyle said to Stan who was about to lunge at the brunette who was an entire foot shorter and looked like he could barely walk a block without falling over.

"What's your schedule look like this semester?" Stan asked as he leaned over to read over his friend's shoulder as they walked away from the office.

"Algebra, History, Spanish, and Gym," Kyle answered as he read off the page.

"Dude, we only have two classes together. At least I can cheat off you in History," Stan joked as he threw an arm around Kyle's shoulders.

"You can't cheat off me in Gym," Kyle replied with a small smirk. "Not that you'd need to."

"Physical education is the one thing I'm good at," Stan said proudly.

"The one thing," Kyle stressed and Stan smacked the back of his head gently.

Stan's locker was around the corner from Kyle's. Kyle looked around at his surrounding lockers but didn't see anyone from his immediate group. He knew the people in his class but he already had a feeling it was going to be a long and boring class. He took a seat near the back of the class in the middle as other students funneled inside. He opened his fresh new notebook to the first page and began to doodle along the margin with small cartoon drawings as he waited. The first day was always the worst and he was dreading it. The bell rang and the teacher began to hand out the class's textbooks. The chatter hadn't stopped as she moved between rows handing textbooks to students.

"Alright, now that everyone had a textbook, we can go over the syllabus," she explained when the classroom door suddenly creaked open. "Hello?"

"Sorry I'm late," an unfamiliar voice said over the dying chatter. "I got lost."

"It's no trouble, you're not that late. Take these and then take a seat," the teacher answered sweetly.

Footsteps moved. Kyle continued to keep his attention on the doodles that took up almost half of the margin. "Is it okay if I sit here?" the unfamiliar voice asked close by.

Kyle quickly turned his head to look at the hand pointing at the empty spot beside him. Colourful bracelets made his eyes widen. He let his eyes travel up and his chest suddenly tightened. The boy standing beside the table smiled. He had beige skin with medium length chestnut brown hair parted on the left and gold coloured eyes. Kyle cleared his throat shakily and nodded. The taller boy's smile widened a bit and he took the empty seat. The teacher carried on with explaining the syllabus every student had.

"My name's Aaron," the mystery boy introduced himself as he offered the hand that the colourful bracelets were wrapped around.

Kyle stared at the colours for a moment. The colourful string weaved through small beads that were painted with letters. Kyle couldn't make out what they said. "Kyle Broflovski," he said as he grabbed the boy's hand to give it a small shake.

The boy smiled. It was wide and made Kyle's chest tighten again. _"What the hell is going on?"_ he thought to himself as he quickly moved his hand away.

"It's nice to meet you, Kyle," the boy said with genuine happiness.

"Mr. Carmichael?" the teacher called out across the classroom.

"Yes ma'am?" Aaron replied.

"Pay attention, young man," the teacher said.

Aaron's smile widened. It was genuine. Kyle blinked. "Sorry, Ms. Elson," he apologized.

" _Who the hell is this guy?"_ Kyle thought to himself.

"Ugh, dude, creative writing sucks!" Stan exclaimed as he took the seat next to Kyle where he could sit next to the wall. He shuffled through his book but stopped when too much time had passed without a response from his friend. His eyebrow lifted as he turned his head to see Kyle staring a few desks forward and in the left row where Aaron sat reading something in front of him. "Dude!"

Kyle snapped from his daze with a physical jolt. His back straightened and he quickly spun his head around to look back at his friend with wide eyes. "Huh?" he asked in confusion.

Stan chuckled. "Dude, what the hell?" he asked as he rested his elbow against his desk and placed his chin on his palm.

"Oh, uh," Kyle stuttered, his cheeks pinking slightly. "The new kid."

Stan followed Kyle's pointing finger to Aaron. "New kid? Why would anyone join a new school in their last year of high school?" he asked quizzically.

Kyle nodded rapidly. "That's what I was thinking," he shrieked.

"Maybe he's a psychopath who got expelled from his last school?" Stan asked with a wide, unsettling grin.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Why do you always go there?"

"Because it's fun," Stan replied.

"How bad is my luck?" Kenny asked as he walked over to sit in the desk behind Stan. He had the hood of his sweater pulled up over his head and sat with his legs stretched out in front of him to invade into Stan's space. "I've got Mr. Boulder again for Biology again. It's bullshit."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Maybe if you would keep your eyes open then you wouldn't have to retake so many classes."

"Hey, I don't need that kind of lip from you, Broflovski," Kenny warned jokingly as he tossed a crumpled-up piece of paper to let it hit the side of Kyle's head.

Kyle laughed and it filled the room. "I'm just telling it as I see it," he said as he ruffled his own hair and turned. He froze. Aaron's gold eyes stared over his shoulder as the corner of his lips turned up in a slight grin that made Kyle's shoulders shiver. Stan was distracted with reading his textbook but Kenny noticed the tension in Kyle's shoulders as he stared forward at the new kid. An evil, devilish grin formed on Kenny's face. He was going to have far too much fun with what he had planned.

Kyle sat down at the table in the cafeteria with a sigh. The day was dragging on. First period he felt tense the entire class as he tried to get as much information on the new student that sat next to him. Second period, though he had Stan and Kenny to keep him occupied, he couldn't help but think about the student a few desks in front of him. The smile he had was bewitching to Kyle. There was confidence and mystery behind that smile.

"Leftovers?" Stan asked as he poked at Kyle brown paper bag.

"Lasagna," Kyle answered bluntly as he reached into the bag to pull out a can of pop and the Tupperware dish full of a large slice of leftover lasagna.

"Leftover cold lasagna? Is that even considered a lunch?" Stan asked, his nose scrunched up as he spoke.

"Better than cafeteria pizza, again," Kyle rebutted. "You're pretty much eating ass. It smells like ass. It tastes like ass. It's ass."

"What's ass?" Clyde asked as he walked over with Bebe, Craig, and Tweek.

Clyde sat down across the table from Kyle with Bebe on his lap. It was an odd thing they did every lunch but no one questioned it. Craig sat in the middle and Tweek took a shaky seat beside his boyfriend who carried his food for him so he wouldn't drop it.

"The cafeteria pizza," Kyle answered Clyde when everyone was settled in.

"Oh, then you won't mind, right Stanley?" Kenny asked as he skillfully leaned over Stan's shoulder to take the half-eaten slice off his tray.

"Hey! Dude, what the hell?" Stan shouted and reached up to smack Kenny on the chest.

Kenny plopped down next to Kyle, sitting practically on his lap, as he nibbled on the slice of pizza. The cerulean blue eyes were scanning the room. He was looking through the sea of students for a specific one. A brunet sitting alone on the windowsill of one of the large bay windows that looked out the back of the school. He wore thin, silver rimmed glasses perched on the edge of his nose as he read from a worn book and chewed on a bright red apple. Kenny's lips turned up into the devilish grin once again.

Everyone was deep in conversation, except Kyle and Kenny. Kenny silently thanked whatever higher power there was in the world that Kyle was an independent introvert most of the time.

"Hey," Kenny kept his voice low as he nudged Kyle with his elbow. The bright green eyes quickly shifted their attention to Kenny. "Maybe we should invite the new kid over."

Kenny motioned over to the window and Kyle followed with his eyes. He had his fork between his lips having shoved a piece of his lunch into his mouth before his friend spoke. He swallowed his food and stabbed his fork into the piece of lasagna. "Why?" Kyle asked.

Kenny shrugged his shoulders. "He's alone. He doesn't seem lame or anything. Plus, I'm bored. He's new," Kenny explained.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Sure, I guess so," he replied and Kenny could hear his attempt at being nonchalant.

Kenny's grin widened. "You should go invite him over," he suggested.

"Me? Why? It's your idea," Kyle sputtered, trying to keep his voice lowered as he spoke.

"You're the kind one. I'm the weird one. I might scare him off," Kenny explained with a fake pout on his face. Kyle rolled his eyes and shook his head. Kenny sighed. "Alright," he said as he pushed himself up slightly from the bench, "I guess that works. It'll give me a chance to talk to him in private."

Kyle suddenly tensed. He quickly grabbed Kenny's wrist to pull his back down. Bebe gave the two boys a quizzical look. "I'll do it. You're right, you'll just end up scaring him off," Kyle growled.

He stood slowly and stepped over the bench to start to walk away. Stan noticed the absence of his friend and turned his head with furrowed eyebrows. "Where's he going?" he asked as Kenny slid across the bench towards him to take Kyle's spot.

"Just watch and take in the show, dear Stanley," Kenny said in a low voice and grabbed the fork stabbed in Kyle's lunch to shove a piece of the lasagna into his mouth.

Kyle had to shove his hands into the pockets of his sweater to stop their shaking. He was never really one for socializing and making new friends, it made him nervous.

" _So why the hell did I stop Kenny? Why am I the one talking to him?"_ Kyle internally screamed at himself.

He stopped by the window and couldn't help but stare. Aaron was tall with soft muscles that appeared through his t-shirt revealed under his open sweater. He wore dark jeans and expensive sneakers that looked like they had never been worn before that day. He turned his apple in his hand before he took a bite, wiping the juice away with the back of his hand that escaped the corner of his mouth. Kyle swallowed hard. A strange sensation tingled his toes and the back of his neck. The boy stopped chewing for a moment. He lifted his eyes and then quickly turned his head to face Kyle who was creepily staring. Having been caught, Kyle's cheeks lit up with bright red flush as his body tensed. Aaron swallowed the mouthful of apple he had been chewing on.

"Kyle, right?" Aaron asked, the corner of his lip turning up slightly. Kyle swallowed again and nodded. Aaron carefully closed his book, removed his glasses, and turned to let his legs dangle along the wall. "What can I do you for?"

" _Oh fuck, I have to say something. I haven't said anything!"_ Kyle panicked. "Uh, you weren't wearing glasses in class," he blurted out. _"Really? That's your fucking go to?"_

"Watching me, were you?" Aaron asked and Kyle noted how he always seemed so confident. Even his voice was strong and unwavering as he spoke.

"What? No, it's just—you sat next to me in class and they're noticeable," Kyle tried but failed to say without letting his nerves get the better of him.

Aaron could have easily laughed at how flustered Kyle got, but didn't. "I left them in my car and by the time I realized, I was already late for class. I just decided to hold off. I didn't think the teacher would make us take notes on the first day. I couldn't write anything down, but I guess that'll make me learn not to keep these damn things in my car."

Kyle lost himself in Aaron's words. There was something trusting and relaxing about his voice. Kyle quickly shook his daze away and cleared his throat loudly. "Right, uh, well, I was just wondering if you wanted to sit with us."

Kyle pointed a thumb over his shoulder. Aaron leaned to the side to see Kenny smile and wiggle his fingers in a waving motion. "Do I look that lonely?" Aaron asked as he sat back and smiled up at Kyle.

Kyle shrugged his shoulders. "A little bit. And besides, only weirdoes sit alone reading during lunch," he joked. Jokes were good. Jokes were calming.

"Weirder than staring at the guy reading alone during lunch?" Aaron teased with a lifted eyebrow. The blush returned to Kyle's cheeks. He felt warm. His entire body was on fire. Aaron laughed. It was a soft chuckle that instantly made Kyle relax. "I'm kidding. I'd love to join you guys," he said and stood. He wasn't quite as tall as Stan but he still stood over Kyle. He took a step forward to stand within inches of Kyle. "I warn you though. Everyone always falls in love with me eventually," he explained cockily and took another bite of his apple.

Kyle quickly spun around, maybe a bit too quickly. He led the way back to the table where Kenny had his chin resting in his hand as he smiled proudly. "Guys," Kyle spoke up, ending any conversation being held at the table. "This is Aaron, he's new. Aaron, meet Kenny, Stan, Tweek, Craig, Clyde, and Bebe. Aaron's gonna eat with us."

Kyle sat down beside Kenny who had taken the liberty of finishing off the red head's lunch without asking. Kyle rolled his eyes and Aaron sat down beside him, putting his book and glasses down in front of him.

"New school in your final year of high school? How much do your parents hate you?" Clyde joked.

"Well, we have a general understanding of hatred with each other. I'm only allowed another year though before I'm legally allowed to be kicked out so they couldn't go easy on me," Aaron joked back with his signature smile. Clyde chuckled loudly.

"Where are you from?" Stan leaned forward to ask.

"Boulder. My mom got a new job here so we decided to move," Aaron explained and took another bite of his apple.

"And you were okay with that?" Stan asked with general interest.

Aaron shrugged his shoulders. "I couldn't not be okay with it. Besides, it's high school. It sucks no matter where I go. At least here I can kind of get a fresh start. Looks like I can't get away from the weirdoes though, no matter where I go," Aaron teased and lightly bumped Kyle's arm.

Kyle made a happy noise that startled even him. Stan's eyebrow lifted in curiosity towards his best friend. Kyle quickly cleared his throat and lowered his head. "Watch yourself, Kyle," Kenny leaned in towards Kyle to whisper. "You might turn redder than his apple."

" _Fuck you, Kenny McCormick."_


	2. Chapter Two: Secrets

**Secrets, secrets, secrets! Everyone has a secret!**

 **P.S. I love the idea of oblivious Stan Marsh and matchmaker Kenny McCormick!**

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 **Chapter Two**

Kyle shut his bedroom door and let his head rest back against his door with a sigh. He made it through the first day of senior year where every single class was with the new student, Aaron. He made it through his mother's onslaught of questions when he got home. He made it through his father's lecture on making sure to figure everything out ASAP or be left behind. He made it, and his reward was sweet silence. He flopped down on top of his bed and let his tired muscles finally relax. He worked his fingertips into the pain that formed in his temples as he closed his eyes. The pain was dull and slowly faded away as he kneaded the tense skin. He opened his eyes and stared up at the ceiling with a frown.

" _That's not stopping anytime soon,"_ he thought to himself with a sigh.

The lamp turned on with a click and Kyle sat down at his desk to flip open his Algebra textbook. First day back to school and he already had homework. He worked through the equations, taking his time as the sun went down outside. He tapped his pencil against his textbook as he stared at the open page in front of him. He was stuck on a question when he suddenly felt a sharp shock course through his spine as the image of bright gold eyes flashed in his mind. His pencil clattered against his desk as he pushed himself back in his chair. He groaned quietly, squeezing his eyes shut as tight as he could.

"What the hell was that?" he muttered to himself and slowly opened his eyes. The dull pain was back. He gently started to rub his temples again but stopped when he laid his eyes on his notebook. He gently nibbled on his bottom lip and then reached out to grab the notebook as he pushed aside the textbook. He'd come back to the equation later.

Kyle followed Stan and Kenny out of Kenny's truck in a tired haze. He went to bed late and struggled to stay asleep from his vivid dreams. They were moving across the parking lot towards the secondary entrance of the school but Kyle stopped. Stan and Kenny were deep in a conversation and didn't realize their smaller friend had stopped to stare at the familiar black muscle car parked in the lot. It was beautiful.

"Hey, Jew."

Kyle froze and his body tensed. The dull pain in his head amplified into a sharp pain. He quickly turned his head and Cartman stood between him and the school. Cartman's smile was wide to flash his yellow teeth. Kyle struggled to keep his shaking legs steady underneath him. "Out 'ere without yer bodyguards?" he snarled. Stan and Kenny were at the entrance and still didn't notice. Kyle started to panic. His chest tightened and he was struggling to breathe. Cartman's fat fingers wrapped around his arm and he took an instinctive step back. The grip stayed tight around his arm. "Yer not goin' anywhere, Kahl."

"L—Let go of him, Eric," a squeaky voice piped up.

Kyle and Cartman both turned their heads to see Butters approaching with Craig and Tweek. Cartman immediately let go of Kyle to take a step back, his hands up in surrender as Craig barreled down on him. Cartman was tiny against Craig's rage. Butters placed himself in front of Kyle and Tweek was holding on to the red head's arm as he shook.

"I wasn't doin' anything, Craig," Cartman replied smugly.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Fatass?" Stan's voice suddenly shouted.

Cartman was surrounded. Craig was still towering over him as Stan and Kenny approached from behind. "Goin' to class, Fag," Cartman said as the warning bell rang from the school.

Cartman slipped his large ass out of the situation and everyone turned to look at Kyle. _"Fuck, there it is,"_ he thought to himself as he looked between the different faces staring back at him. _"Pity. That's all there is."_

"Kyle—," Stan started to say.

Kyle broke himself from any contact with anyone and began to storm towards the school. "I'm going to be late," he muttered as he passed by his friends with his head lowered. Frustration made his hands shake. He knew they were worried. He knew they just wanted to protect him, but he couldn't stand that look. Pity. It drove him nuts.

He stepped into his Algebra class after he dropped his bag off at his locker and stopped. Aaron sat in the same spot as the previous day. Kyle wasn't sure why but it was a relief to see him there. He had his glasses perched on his slender nose as he read from the book he was reading at lunch the day before. _"You're staring again, idiot,"_ he thought to himself. He immediately straightened his back and marched across the room to stop in front of the desk where the brunet sat. Aaron didn't look up until the small pile of papers were dropped on top of his open book. He looked at Kyle over his glasses and smiled.

"Morning to you too," he said teasingly.

"I copied my Algebra and History notes from yesterday," Kyle replied and started to move around the desk.

Aaron picked up the papers covered in Kyle's tired writing to examine it. "Wow, thanks," he said happily.

Kyle sat down in the seat next to Aaron and shook his head. "Don't thank me. I just don't want to see you fall behind on the first day at a new school. That would be embarrassing," Kyle explained and let the small smile form on his face.

"Hey! There it is!" Aaron exclaimed loudly as he gently poked at Kyle's cheek. "I thought maybe you were some sort of robot who didn't know how to smile."

"I know how to smile," Kyle said as he swatted Aaron's hand away and then turned to scowl at the taller boy.

Aaron grinned. "You're right, you have scowl marks and you're not even technically an adult yet," he explained as he pressed a fingertip to the space between Kyle's eyebrows. "Robots don't get wrinkles." Kyle smiled again and smacked Aaron's hand away as he rolled his eyes.

The bell rang and Ms. Elson stood at the front of the class. "Alright students, let's start our class."

Kyle felt like the class wasn't going to drag on as much as it did the day before. He may have been tired before, but he found energy from somewhere he didn't know he had. Aaron was strange but it was fun to be around. He quickly won over Kyle, Stan, and even Kenny. Everyone else took a little time but he eventually managed to win them all over. He even had Craig laughing to the point of tears one day. The person he had the most though was Kyle. They were in all four classes a day with each other. They sat next to each other in Algebra and Spanish where they knew no one else except for Clyde in Spanish who kept closely to Token.

It was two weeks later when Kyle, Stan, Kenny, and Aaron were sitting together at lunch. Kenny usually took to scavenging small bits of food from everyone, but Aaron sat down and presented a second sandwich from his bag to the dirty blonde-haired boy across the table.

"Huh?" Kenny asked quizzically.

"It's yours. I made it," Aaron said with his bright smile.

"I don't—," Kenny said and Kyle was surprised by the nervousness in his voice. Kenny was always cool and collected.

"Would you rather the sandwich or would you rather pick from Stan's ass pizza and Kyle's disgusting leftover?" Aaron asked.

"Hey!" both Kyle and Stan protested simultaneously.

Kenny smiled meekly and reached out to take the offered food. "Thanks," he said and took a large bite out of it.

"I wanted to ask you guys something," Aaron said after a moment of silence made by his kind gesture towards Kenny that left everyone slightly stunned.

"Only if you make another one of these," Kenny said, his voice muffled by a mouth full of food.

Aaron chuckled lightly. "I wanted to know if you guys wanted to come over to my house after school today. It's still a bit of a mess because of the boxes but the game room is done," he explained.

"Hell yeah, dude!" Stan exclaimed loudly.

"Like I said, only if you make another one of these," Kenny spoke up as he waved the sandwich around in front of Aaron.

The brunet laughed and nodded. "Yes, Kenny, I'll make you a sandwich. I promise."

"You're coming too, right, Kyle?" Stan asked.

Aaron turned his head to look at his red headed friend. The smaller boy hummed lightly to himself as he tapped his fork against the inside of his Tupperware dish. "I don't know, he did call my leftovers disgusting," he mentioned in a teasing voice.

"Hey, I was kidding," Aaron said as he bumped his shoulder against Kyle's. "Come on, it'll be fun. I promise."

Kyle's spine shuttered at the proximity he was at with Aaron. He could feel the other boy's warmth through their shirts. A foot suddenly connected with Kyle's shin, snapping him out of his daze. Kyle shot a scowl across the table at Kenny who had his sandwich shoved into his mouth as he shrugged his shoulders slightly.

"Well?" Aaron pressed.

Kyle quickly turned his head to face his friend and smiled. "Yeah, of course."

Aaron beamed. Kyle didn't think it was possible for his smile to get any brighter, but it did. It made Kyle's chest suddenly tighten and he wanted to stare at that smile forever.

" _Dude! What the hell! That's so gay!"_

Kyle quickly shook his head and looked back down at his lunch but stopped before he could take a bite of the leftover meatloaf. His eyes shifted up and Kenny still had the sandwich shoved in his mouth but the corners of his lips were obviously turned up into his devilish grin that Kyle had noticed more and more lately. He was up to something.

Kyle ruffled his wet hair with his towel. Gym was harsh and left him feeling gross so he decided to have a quick shower to wash away the thin layer of sweat created on his skin. Most of the class was gone to catch their buses or walk home. Stan, Kenny, and Aaron waited in the locker room. Kenny and Stan were sitting back to back on the bench as Aaron leaned against the lockers next to Kyle's. Kyle stepped out of the shower room in his jeans while still drying his hair with the small towel.

"Kyle!" Stan yelled and startled his friend.

"Jeez, what Stan?" Kyle asked as he stepped over the bench and Stan's legs.

"Aaron has a dog and a cat and an iguana. An iguana, Kyle!" Stan explained excitedly.

Kyle opened his locker and turned to give Aaron a quizzical look with a lifted eyebrow. "You own an iguana?" he asked to verify.

Aaron nodded. "Yep, and a hedgehog too," he added.

"Dude, a hedgehog!" Stan yelled, his voice echoed off the walls of the locker room.

Kyle quickly spun his head around, making his body turn slightly, to face his dark-haired friend. "I heard him! Calm down, dude," Kyle yelled back. He sighed and turned back to face Aaron. The gold eyes were lowered to Kyle's chest, his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. Kyle mimicked his confusion before he looked down and was reminded of the long scar that ran from his left collarbone to just under his sternum. His cheeks heated and he quickly reached into his locker to grab his shirt to throw it on over his head. Aaron cleared his throat, frowned, and ran his fingers through his messy hair. It was the first time Kyle had seen him frown. Tension was thick between the two boys but it was quickly cut off when Kenny suddenly piped up in a whiny voice.

"Come on! I want another sandwich!"

"Alright, Kenny, we're going," Stan said and swung his legs off the bench.

They all grabbed their bags and met in the parking lot where Aaron and Kenny had parked beside each other. The old battered pickup truck looked even older next to the perfectly restored muscle car Aaron drove.

"You follow me?" Aaron asked Kenny who stopped and looked at Kyle.

The grin returned to his face. _"What the hell is that look for?"_ Kyle snapped mentally.

"Why don't you take Kyle?" Kenny asked and everyone looked at him with different levels of confusion and curiosity. "If I lose you, Stan and Kyle can text each other to figure out where you are."

"But I know where—," Stan started to say but stopped when Kenny threw his bag over his shoulder and intentionally hit the raven-haired boy in the stomach.

"Try not to go too fast. My truck's sturdy but she's not very fast compared to yours," Kenny joked and then grabbed Stan by the shoulder. "Let's go, Stanley."

"Stop calling me that!" Stan shouted as he was pulled away.

"They have an interesting relationship," Aaron realized.

Kyle laughed. "That is probably the biggest understatement of the year," he joked and looked over at Aaron who seemed almost relieved towards him. "What?" Kyle asked sternly.

Aaron shook his head. "Nothing, let's go," he replied and turned to head towards the driver's side of his car.

Kyle opened the passenger's side and lowered himself into the vehicle. It had soft leather seats and was pristine. The inside had small details of blue on the dashboard and steering wheel but most it all was black.

"Wow," Kyle couldn't help but gawk. Aaron looked at him with curiosity. "I've never been in a car like this before. What—What kind is it?"

"A 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle," Aaron answered as the engine purred to life. The sound made Kyle's mouth stretch to a wide smile.

"It's beautiful," Kyle said as he gently ran his hand over the leather dashboard to let his thin fingers feel every bump.

"It sure is," Aaron said in a low voice.

Kyle quickly turned his head as Aaron was turning in his seat to back out of the parking spot. Suddenly, he was hit with the memory of the locker room. The frown on Aaron's face, it seemed so foreign, and Kyle knew he was the reason for it. Aaron put the car in drive and started out of the parking lot. Kyle fidgeted with the hem of his sweater's sleeve. The car turned out of the parking lot onto the main street.

"Look, I—," Kyle suddenly started to say but stopped himself when he realized he wasn't quite sure where he was going with it. Aaron didn't say anything. Kyle wasn't sure if he just hadn't heard him or if he was being polite in letting Kyle form the words. "My scar, there's a reason for it," Kyle started to explain. "It's difficult to explain, and I—."

"Kyle," Aaron suddenly said and the forcefulness in his tone startled the red head. Kyle pressed his hands harder into his lap as he stared down at them. "I barely know you and you barely know me. One of the great things about becoming friends is finding out new things as you go but at your own pace. I'm sure the scar has something to do with a long story that I will eventually know when the time comes. If that time isn't now, I'm not going to be heartbroken about it. Everyone has a past they're uncomfortable talking about, but you must find people you're comfortable with to finally share. I may not be one of those people now, but I hope I'll become one of those people. I mean, you guys are weird, but you're also pretty cool to hang out with too."

Kyle's shoulders relaxed. He couldn't look up but Aaron was speaking with a caring tone that made him feel—

" _Safe?"_

"You just—You looked so freaked out when you saw it," Kyle explained.

Aaron scoffed and nodded. "I will admit, it kind of freaked me out. It looks bad, like it hurt a lot. A hell of a lot," he explained and tapped his fingers against the steering wheel. "Can I ask you something about it?"

Kyle turned his head slightly to look at the swaying keys in the ignition. "Yeah," he answered in a low voice.

"Are you alright?" Aaron asked.

The question was like a knife to Kyle's chest. He had been asked it so many god damn times before but it always seemed like it was a reflex from people, like they were asking just because they had to. Even Stan sounded robotic every time he said it, but Aaron sounded genuine, like he really wanted to make sure Kyle was alright. Like every part of him was untouched.

"I'm getting there," Kyle answered.

Aaron nodded. There wasn't anything past that. There was no pushing for an explanation. There was no making sure or questioning Kyle's response. It was just complete understanding. It was nice to sit in the quiet cab of the car without having to explain his every action or thought. It was strange to say, but Aaron was probably the only one Kyle knew who understood.

" _Fuckin' shut up!"_ the voice screamed in Kyle's head. He rubbed at his aching temples. _"Yer nothin'!"_

"Hey," Aaron's voice broke through the voices as a hand gently grabbed his wrist. He jumped at the touch but it was soft, not rough. It was ready to let go any second even know Kyle didn't want it to. Kyle quickly spun his head around and Aaron smiled at him. "Come on, we're here."

Aaron opened his door to step out and Kyle looked through the windshield. They were parked in the driveway of the bungalow he and Stan had stopped to watch before the party at Stark's pond. The party where he flipped out and went home way too early. The party where Stan and Wendy were so plastered that they almost made it to homerun. Stan was bummed the next day, which wasn't a good mix with a hangover, but he couldn't stop grinning from ear to ear.

"Let's go!" Aaron called back inside the car before he closed the door.

Kyle quickly unlocked his seatbelt to climb out with his bag. Kenny stopped his truck on the street a few minutes later. His rock music was muffled but loud from inside the cab. Kenny and Stan were singing along as they banged their heads along to the beat.

"I take it back," Aaron said over the top of his car with a smile. "Those two are fucking weird."

Kyle let himself smile back. "Now that's the proper explanation of their relationship."

Aaron stepped inside first to throw his keys into the small bowl next to the door and kicked off his shoes. Kyle was directly behind him with Stan and Kenny trailing behind. It was a normal home with photos hanging from the walls and sitting on flat furniture. A television sat against the left wall. Immediately to the right was a bedroom, Aaron's. Stairs descended next to his bedroom and on the other side was another door to another bedroom. Across the living room was a large archway into the kitchen and a bathroom could be seen next to the second bedroom's door.

"Make yourselves at home," Aaron said as he stepped into his bedroom and removed his sweater.

Kenny immediately took the line to heart. He kicked off his boots and sunk into the large armchair to sit in it sideways with his legs dangling over the arm. Stan took his shoes off and walked over to the long haired white and black cat that was laying lazily on the arm of the couch. Kyle didn't sit. He removed his shoes, dropped his bag onto the floor, and started to look around. He was standing at the top of the stairs looking at a wide photo of three people standing in front of an amusement park. One of the people Kyle recognized as Aaron. He was much younger in the photo with a chubbier face and shorter hair. One either side of younger Aaron had to be his parents. A slender woman with long dark blonde hair and a man who looked almost identical to the older Aaron except with more muscle.

A drawer shut from Aaron's bedroom. Kyle's eyes unconsciously shifted and he could see the reflection of Aaron's back in the full length mirror set in the corner of the room. He was stripped down to just his black boxers with small white patterns. Kyle's cheeks flushed with heat as he looked over the muscles in Aaron's shoulder blades and the way the waistband of his boxers dipped down just a bit too low.

"Aaron!" Stan suddenly yelled and Kyle tore his eyes away as Aaron's reflection moved.

"Yeah?" Aaron poked his head out to ask and gave Kyle a strange look that made the red head quickly spin around and walk away.

"Where's your dog?" Stan asked. He was standing and holding the cat in his arms as it rubbed its nose against his chin.

"He's not actually here yet. Mom wanted to make sure we were all settled in first before we brought him. We're going to get him from a family friend who has been watching him next weekend," Aaron explained and then ducked back into his room.

Stan pouted. "It's awesome that your mom and dad let you have so many pets," he said.

Aaron made a noise from his room but didn't say anything. Kyle was still moving through the room looking at the photos. They were all of Aaron and his parents. The three of them at a picnic, Aaron looked about six. The three of them celebrating one of Aaron's birthdays, he turned three. And then there were a few of just Aaron and his mother. His graduation from middle school. Him holding a baseball trophy when he was about thirteen. Kyle narrowed his eyebrows together as he stared at a photo of a sixteen-year-old Aaron sitting in a fire truck with his mother standing beside it looking proud as hell.

Aaron returned with a new change of clothes on and walked over to smack one of Kenny's feet. "I'm gonna make you a sandwich now," he said and Kenny whooped. "We can order pizza later for dinner."

"When do your parents get home?" Kyle turned to ask as Aaron moved towards the kitchen.

"My mom works at the hospital. She's a nurse. Her hours are crazy. She won't be home until midnight at the earliest, if we're lucky," Aaron answered.

"And your dad?" Kyle pressed.

Aaron suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. Stan and Kenny looked at him with wide eyes. Aaron slowly turned and sighed. "Alright, I guess it's time you know my deep dark secret that'll make you look at me differently and we'll stop being friends," he said as if he was joking but there was strain in his voice. "My dad's dead," he said and everyone tensed. "He was a firefighter. He died in a building fire when I was eight."

"Dude, what the fuck? Why didn't you say anything?" Stan asked as he set the cat down on the couch to which it gave a sad mewl in response.

"Because it's not a big deal, I don't want it to be a big deal, and I didn't want that dumb pity look people feel obligated to give even though they didn't even know my dad," Aaron explained. He let out a heavy huff and ran his fingers through his hair before he lifted both his hands in front of him. "Okay, look. I don't want to be that kid with the dead parent. I went through that in elementary and middle school. Even most of my high school career consisted of that. Here though, I can be—."

"The sandwich maker," Kenny cut in.

The mood lightened in the room. Aaron nodded. "Exactly. So, don't apologize. Don't give me the pity look. Let's just hang out."

Stan shrugged his shoulders. "Sounds good to me," he said with a smile.

Kenny nodded. "Yep! But only if you make me that sandwich!" he yelled.

Aaron rolled his eyes dramatically as he turned back around to disappear into the kitchen. Kyle frowned.

" _Everyone has a past their uncomfortable talking about."_

He understood because he was living it.

* * *

 **Next chapter coming soon! Be patient my pretties. :P**


	3. Chapter Three: You're Amazing

**Chapter Three**

Explosions echoed off the television in the basement of Aaron's house. It had been turned into a giant recreation room with a television, a long sectional couch, game systems connected to the television, and a pool table with a small room in the corner where a bathroom and laundry room was. Aaron's iguana, Marco, sat in his terrarium in the corner of the room. Stan practically squealed like a girl when he saw it. Pinecone, Aaron's hedgehog, was also being taken care of by his family friends with his dog. Stan was bummed but he let it slide when Aaron lifted Marco out of his terrarium to put him on Stan's shoulder.

"Kyle, take a picture!" Stan said excitedly. Kyle rolled his eyes with a smile as he dug his phone out of his pocket to take a photo of Stan's happy expression with the large lizard perched on his shoulder. "This thing is so freaking cool!"

Kyle was about to lower his hand when Aaron suddenly stood behind his shoulder, tapped the screen to flip the camera, and held onto Kyle's wrist. "Say chunky bunny!" Aaron said happily.

Kyle laughed. "Chunky bunny!"

The phone clicked as it took the picture of Kyle and Aaron smiling as they stood ear to ear with each other. Aaron took a step away as he pushed his fingers through his hair. "Not bad for a ginger," he joked. Kyle turned his head to look up with a scowl but he couldn't seem to muster it when he was met with the other boy's confident smile. Kyle's heart sighed.

" _Beautiful,"_ he thought and quickly looked away, embarrassed by his own mind against him.

"Ah! Aaron! I don't know what he's doing!" Stan suddenly shouted.

Aaron turned away from Kyle and laughed. "Stan, calm down. Just lift your arm. Not like that!" Aaron yelled and quickly rushed to Stan's side.

Kyle smiled down at the new photo on his phone before he clicked the button to put it to sleep and looked up. He met Kenny's wide, unblinking eyes. He smiled but it wasn't devilish or sinister, it was almost like he was understanding something for the first time after struggling for so long. Kyle scowled back at Kenny as he shoved his phone back into his pocket and turned away.

" _What the hell was that look for? Weirdo,"_ Kyle thought to himself.

"We are hanging out here from now on," Stan explained over the loud explosions and gun fire as he and Aaron played on the game sphere after getting Marco back into his terrarium.

Kenny was sprawled across the adjacent section of the couch to rest his head on the large pillow in the corner as he munched on the sandwich Aaron made. Stan sat next to him with Aaron on his other side and Kyle sat at the end with his feet up to hug his knees to his chest. He was watching the game in front of him but his mind had wandered somewhere else. It was in the bad place that made his temples throb. Stan suddenly threw his hands up into the air with a cheerful shout as Aaron sputtered his lips in defeat.

"I kicked your ass, Carmichael!" Stan said as he punched Aaron's shoulder.

"I have not played this in a while. I am definitely out of practice," Aaron replied and handed his controller over to Kyle.

"What—?" Kyle started to ask in protest. He was in a fog from behind snapped from his thoughts as he took the controller.

"I'm gonna order pizza. Keep it warm for me," Aaron explained as he stood and ruffled Kyle's hair.

The gesture made Kyle's cheeks warm and his stomach tighten. "I'll come with you. I want to see your cat again," Stan said as he stood and quickly followed Aaron up the stairs.

"Stan has really taken a liking to him," Kyle explained as he watched the two boys disappear up the stairs.

Kenny shoved the last of his sandwich into his mouth and quickly sat up. He waited until the two taller boys were far out of reach before he shifted across the couch to sit with his legs crossed next to Kyle. The closeness made Kyle lean away until he was pressed against the arm of the couch. Kenny's bold blue eyes stared in small slits. Kyle felt uncomfortable.

"Kenny, what are you—?" Kyle started to ask.

"You have a crush on the new kid," Kenny said, interrupting Kyle who immediately went red in the face as his eyes widened in panic.

"What? N—No! Kenny, that—that's ridiculous," Kyle shrieked and coughed to try to clear away the bundle of nerves that had formed in his throat. _"Smooooth, Broflovski."_

Kenny's devilish smile returned. "You have a crush on the new kid. That's adorable," he teased Kyle in a loud voice. Kyle groaned loudly.

"Kenny, stop!" Kyle yelled as he quickly covered Kenny's mouth. "Shut up, dude!" Kenny's voice was muffled as he spoke into Kyle's hand. "What?" Kyle asked. Kenny rolled his eyes and pressed the tip of his tongue against Kyle's palm. "Ew! Dude, that's gross!"

"What did you expect? Really?" Kenny asked, his eyebrow lifted slightly as he asked the question. Kyle scowled. "Anyways, what I said was, it's nothing to be embarrassed about. He's an attractive human being."

That line didn't surprise Kyle. Kenny was a very…let's say, loving person. He was known swing whichever way got him the most amount of attention at the way. He wasn't a slut or anything, he just enjoyed loving people. What was weird though was that he always seemed to go back to that one person: Butters. They couldn't officially be anything because of Butters' parents, but it was obvious to everyone there was something there.

"Kyle?" Kenny pressed and mimicked Kyle's soft, sad expression.

"Kenny—," Kyle started to say and Kenny heard the shake in his voice.

Kenny's hands clamped down on Kyle's shoulders to stop him. "Kyle," Kenny said firmly and Kyle had to blink a few times to force back the tingling sensation in his nose and eyes. "Do not let him win. He doesn't get to decide your happiness, remember? I know you're worried. I know he's in your head, but you can't let him do that. We won't let that happen." Kyle inhaled heavily and nodded. Kenny smiled and gave Kyle's shoulders a small squeeze before he moved away.

"You do realize nothing is going to happen, right? He's not going to like me like that," Kyle explained with an exacerbated voice.

"And what makes you so sure about that?" Kenny asked with a grin.

"Kyle!" Stan suddenly yelled as his heavy footsteps thumped down the stairs. "The cat's name is Periwinkle. Aaron named his cat Periwinkle!" Stan explained and reached the bottom of the stairs with the black and white cat cradled in his arms as he laughed. For a moment, Kyle saw his friend revert back to his ten-year-old self. So much happiness and light in his eyes.

"It's my mom's cat!" Aaron shouted down the stairs.

"Its name is Periwinkle!" Stan yelled and his laughing grew louder.

Kenny leaned back towards Kyle again to whisper, "You can't spend your entire life looking after that fool," he said and pointed his thumb towards Stan. "You need something else in your life. Something good for you."

"Kenny, it's just a crush. I'm sure it'll go away and then we won't have to ever have his discussion again," Kyle explained quietly so Stan wouldn't hear him.

He was wrong. So very wrong.

The days in school were spent always around each other. Aaron moved so he was always sitting near Kyle. In History, he sat in the desk behind Kyle and it made the red head nervous. He felt exposed, like he was always being watched. Sometimes Aaron would push the eraser of his pencil against tense spots of Kyle's back when the class was especially boring. The pressure would make Kyle hiss between his teeth as he tilted his head forward and Aaron would chuckle. Aaron's laugh made Kyle melt. It was always genuine and hearty.

Outside of school wasn't much better. Kyle, Stan, Kenny, and Aaron frequently hung out together. They were usually either at Aaron's or Stan's. Kyle didn't want to have to worry about his overbearing mother looming so he never offered to go to his place and Kenny…well, you know why.

Kyle let out a low groan as he sat back in his chair. He placed his fingertips against his temples to rub them. "I hate Spanish," he groaned and then placed his hands on top of his desk. "It's gibberish. It makes no sense."

"Is the all knowing Kyle Broflovski finally stumped on something as trivial as Spanish?" Aaron asked with a wide grin as he continued to read his textbook.

"It's just—It doesn't make any sense to me," Kyle groaned.

"I would say," the teacher said as she set down Kyle's quiz from the week before. The large red C was like a knife to his gut. "Maybe you could benefit from some tutoring?"

Kyle sighed. The teacher handed Aaron his test and continued through the rows. "I could tutor you if you wanted," Aaron spoke up. Kyle turned his head as Aaron held up his test to reveal the large red A on it.

Kyle frowned and quickly looked away. "No, I'm fine," he grumbled.

Aaron sighed. "Right, your pride. Okay," he muttered and Kyle shot him an annoyed sideways glance. "How about this? I need some help with Algebra. My grade is good, but not good enough. If I help you with Spanish, will you help me with Algebra?" Kyle looked down at his test. He could use the help. He knew he could. Something nagged at the back of his head though. "Wow, thanks Aaron," Aaron started to say mockingly. Kyle frowned playfully and turned his head back to look at Aaron who was keeping his head forward as he mocked Kyle. "That's so kind and generous of you. You're the best. What would I ever do without you?"

"Alright, shut up," Kyle said as he pressed his hand against Aaron's face. The brunet laughed and Kyle instinctively smiled. "You have a deal."

Kyle felt Aaron's face contort under his hand as he smiled. "Good," he said and the bell rang to signal the end of third period. "Then we'll study at your place after school today."

Aaron stood and Kyle waved him off. "Yeah, yeah, I—," he said dismissively before he realized what had been said. "Wait!" he called out but Aaron had already gathered his books and was on his way out of the class. Kyle quickly gathered his things but was far too late to catch up to Aaron. _"What an asshole, inviting himself to my house like that."_ Kyle was rushing to the locker room when he spotted Stan and Kenny approaching from the opposite direction of the hallway. "Guys! Do you want to come over to hang out after school today?"

"Sorry dude, date with Wendy tonight," Stan answered with a shrug of his shoulders.

"I've gotta babysit Karen," Kenny answered and pushed into the locker room with a loud. "Damn Butters! Nice ass!" to earn a loud screech from the boy. Kenny loved torturing the poor blonde boy.

" _Alone with Aaron. Oh shit."_

Kyle had tried hard to never be alone with the brunet. It had happened a few times and each time ended with Kyle's face redder than a tomato and Aaron laughing. Kyle couldn't keep his head on straight.

"Kyle?" Stan asked as he carefully reached out to place his hand on his friend's shoulder. His expression was somber. "Are you okay? Do we need to go to the counsellor?"

Kyle frowned. He shook his head. "No, Stan, we don't need to go to the counsellor," he replied dryly.

Stan lifted his hand away from his friend's shoulder in surrender. "I'm just making sure."

"And I promised you that I would tell you if I needed help. I don't intend on breaking that promise anytime soon," Kyle explained and pushed through the locker room door to step inside the noisy room. Aaron was standing at his locker fishing through to find his gym clothes. Kyle inhaled deeply before he marched over to the boy's side. "We should study at your place," he said quickly.

Aaron leaned out of his locker to look around the door at the shorter red headed boy. He smiled. He always smiled. "We're always at my place. I want to see where you live for a change," he explained.

"You've seen where I live," Kyle replied, his hands on his hips.

"I've seen the outside of where you live. I want to see where the great and powerful Kyle Broflovski was born and raised," Aaron said and turned back into his locker.

Kyle exhaled and shook his head. "Look, it's just—I don't—," he started to say, struggling to find his words.

"I'm not worried, Kyle," Aaron said and Kyle's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. "I'm actually excited to meet your—oh, how did Stan put it—Blackhawk style helicopter mom," he said teasingly.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Of course Stan told you," he muttered.

"Of course. I'm his super best friend," Aaron said and looked around his locker again to wiggle his eyebrows at Kyle.

Kyle scoffed. "In your dreams, Carmichael. There's only one Stan's super best friend and that's me. Just like how there's only one Kyle's super best friend and that's Stan," he explained.

Aaron grabbed his locker and leaned in towards Kyle. Kyle was almost thrown back by the sudden movement. "I guess I'm gonna have to take a different position with you then."

Kyle had no idea why, but the words made him tense. A strange sensation started in his chest and quickly dropped through his stomach to his crotch. Aaron chuckled and leaned back to pull his shirt over his head. Kyle couldn't help but let his eyes examine the beautiful beige skin revealed in front of him. Aaron had small, toned muscles along his arms, over his shoulders, and down his chest and stomach.

" _Yer no one. Yer never gonna be loved."_

Kyle felt his stomach twist painfully. He quickly looked away. Aaron noticed the suddenly shift in Kyle's demeanour and it made his face contort into worry. Kyle quickly covered his mouth with his hand and sped past the taller brunet. Aaron opened his mouth to call out but Kyle was running towards the bathroom. Aaron's eyes met with Kenny who reflected the same look of worry. The blonde gently closed his locker door and followed the ginger into the bathroom. Kenny closed the door behind him with a soft click and flinched at the sound of loud heaving that echoed throughout the bathroom. Kyle was in the handicap stall. There was more room in there for him on the floor as he leaned over the toilet. Kenny quietly opened the door to peek inside. Kyle was hunched over the toilet. His body tensed, his shoulders shrugged, and he cried with every heave into the porcelain bowl. Kenny pressed his back against the tile wall to slide down into a crouch as he gently rubbed Kyle's tense back.

"Do you need something?" Kenny asked, his voice low and worried.

Kyle slowly shook his head. "No," he groaned, his voice echoed inside the toilet. "I think—I think I'm done. I just—," he stopped and threw up again.

Kenny sighed and moved his hand up Kyle's back to carefully move his hair out of his face. "Kyle?"

"I'm fine, really, I am," Kyle said and sat up as he tilted his head back slightly. "I won't let him win." Kenny smiled and roughly ruffled Kyle's hair. The red head laughed as he moved away from the touch. Kenny stepped out of the bathroom stall first and waited for Kyle who went for the sink. "You should finish getting ready, Ken. I just need to get the taste out of my mouth. Tell the coach I'll be out as fast as I can."

Kenny nodded. He didn't want to leave his friend but he knew Kyle was nowhere near his breaking point. A moment of weakness, yes, but he hadn't broken. He let the door close behind him and stopped when he noticed Aaron leaning against the wall beside the bathroom. He was in his gym clothes and his usually happy face was twisted with worry and guilt.

"Is he okay?" Aaron asked as he pushed off the wall to step up to Kenny.

Kenny nodded. "He is. His stomach just isn't agreeing with him," he answered and smiled.

Aaron bit his lip. Kenny tilted his head slightly. "I've—I've heard things about him. Nothing concrete or detailed but something happened? Last summer, I think?" Aaron asked. Kenny exhaled slowly through his nose. "Is that—?" Aaron stopped himself and exhaled hard.

"It was…bad, what happened. It's not my place to tell you though. It's his," Kenny explained. Aaron nodded quickly in understanding. "It's hard for him to trust someone but he'd tell you if you asked. I know he would."

Class was rough for Kyle, to say the least. His stomach churned dangerously occasionally but not enough to make him run for the bathroom. Kenny kept a close eye on him. It was annoying. Kyle could feel the worried blue eyes burning holes in the back of his head.

After class, Kyle was getting his bag together at his locker. He threw it over his shoulder and slammed his locker shut. He began to turn but stopped as he let out a sharp yelp. Aaron had been standing behind his locker door and he was too distracted with his own thoughts to realize.

"Holy—jeez dude, you scared me!" Kyle shouted angrily and punched Aaron's shoulder.

Aaron chuckled. "Sorry, didn't mean to. You ready to go?" he asked.

Kyle had completely forgotten. Studying at his house. _"Ah, shit,"_ he thought to himself. He wanted to say no. He wanted to cancel, but there was something stopping him. A voice deep in the back of his head. It was growing louder and louder as Aaron stared at him with wide gold eyes.

 _No, maybe another time_ , was what Kyle was ready to say, but instead he answered with, "Yeah, let's go."

The relief that washed over Aaron made his face light up brighter than Kyle had ever seen. "Awesome!" he said excitedly and grabbed Kyle's wrist to start to lead him out of the school.

They crawled into Aaron's car and he sped towards Kyle's house. Kyle wanted to tell him to slow down but he was becoming more and more aware of the fact that Aaron loved to speed. He always kept one hand on the steering wheel and the other hand on the gear shifter, even if he didn't need to. He was always relaxed, like driving was the most natural thing to him. Kyle was a bit jealous. He wasn't good at driving, but Aaron was. He was made for it. Plus, there was also the looming elephant in the car that only Kyle was aware of. He always wanted to reach out to the hand on the shifter and slip his fingers between the other boy's. It was in his mind every time and made him shift uncomfortably in his seat.

Aaron parked the car on the road. Kyle insisted he park in the driveway but Aaron only smiled and assured him that the street was fine. Aaron flew out of the driver's seat to quickly jog around the car to stand in the middle of the front lawn. Kyle shut the passenger side door and gave the car a small pat. He loved the damn thing. It was so powerful and strong, just like Aaron. He blushed. _"Oh shit, come on man, pull it together!"_

"Let's go!" Aaron ran up to grab Kyle's wrist to start to pull him towards the house. Kyle couldn't help but smile at how excited his friend was. He grabbed the doorknob to his front door and turned it.

"Kyle!" his mother yelled immediately. "You're never going to—oh!" Sheila stood in the doorway to the kitchen. She stopped when she noticed Kyle enter the house with someone other than Stan or Kenny. Her eyes were wide at first and then she relaxed and smiled. "Well, such a handsome young man. You must be Aaron."

Aaron beamed as he stood just inside the door. He moved so Kyle could close the door and took off his boots. When he was no longer wearing his boots he quickly moved across the room to meet Sheila with an outstretched hand.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Broflovski," he greeted with genuine happiness.

Kyle tilted his head slightly as he watched from the door. Sheila laughed. "Kyle's right, you are just a darling thing," she said.

"Ma!" Kyle shouted in embarrassment.

"He's told me so much about you, Aaron. It's nice to finally meet you as well," Sheila said and ignored Aaron's hand to give him a hug. It was awkward at such a height difference but Aaron dealt with it gracefully. "Also, you may call me Sheila," the short red headed woman said as she pulled away to place her hands on Aaron's cheeks. "Would you like something to eat or to drink?"

Aaron's cheeks smushed under Sheila's hands as he smiled wider. "No, thank you, Sheila. I really appreciate it."

"You'll let me know if you need something?" Sheila asked, her eyebrow lifted high.

Aaron nodded. "Of course, ma'am."

Sheila shuttered with a small laugh as she took a step back. "My, you are quite different, Aaron. Your parents definitely raised a little gentleman."

Kyle's smile instantly faded. "Ah, ma—," he started to protest.

"They definitely tried," Aaron interrupted, not correcting the mistake Sheila unknowingly made.

Sheila gently patted Aaron's cheek and then moved around him to face her son. "I have something to tell you, but it can wait until later. I have to go pick up your brother to take him to hockey practice," she explained and made her way over to put on her boots and coat. "I'll bring home dinner," she said and turned to face Aaron who had turned on his heel to face the mother and son. "Will you be staying for dinner?"

"Um—," Aaron hummed unknowingly.

"Yeah, we have lots of studying to do," Kyle piped up. _"I have got to calm down. I am way too excited."_

Aaron's lips turned up into a small smile. Sheila nodded. "Alright, I'll be back later with food," she said and kissed Kyle's cheek. "Behave yourself, boys."

Kyle stuck his tongue out in disgust as he rubbed his cheek. His mother grabbed her purse and keys and shut the door behind her. Kyle felt the tension grow thick in the room. He was alone with Aaron, in his house, not even his mother there to break the feeling. Aaron stood across the room, his lips turned up into a small smile. He and Kyle stared at each other before Aaron finally broke. It was surprising but Aaron seemed nervous as he laughed lightly and ran his fingers through his hair.

"I don't know what you were worried about. She's fantastic," he explained and slid his bag off his shoulder to set it down.

Kyle scoffed and rolled his eyes. "You've only met her once. Just wait until you've met her a few times," he explained.

"Well, at least I know I'm coming back a few more times," Aaron pointed out and took off his jacket to set it over the back of the couch. Kyle had to swallow the lump in his throat. Aaron grabbed his bag to throw it back over his shoulder and faced Kyle with a quirked eyebrow. "Are you going to just stand there or are you going to take your coat and boots off?" Kyle quickly looked down. He was still wearing his padded green coat and brown boots. He made a rather unflattering noise and Aaron laughed. "Well, while you do that, I'm going to make myself at home," he explained as he walked over to the bottom of the stairs that led up to the second floor. "I hope you don't have anything embarrassing laying out in the open in your room."

"Wha—Hey! You don't even know which room is mine!" Kyle yelled as he quickly rushed to kick off his boots.

"I'm sure I can figure it out!" Aaron called back over his shoulder and disappeared at the top of the stairs.

Kyle groaned and fought to take his coat off. He made sure to hang it up which was the most annoying thing but he didn't need his mother tearing him apart about it. He quickly raced up the stairs to his room and stopped in the doorway. Aaron was laying on his stomach on Kyle's bed with his Spanish textbook open in front of him. He didn't look up. "Took you long enough."

Kyle rolled his eyes. He dropped his bag onto the floor and quickly rummaged inside for his books. He dropped them down on his desk and turned, his hands perched on his hips.

"Algebra," he said. Aaron looked up through his eyelashes without tilting his head.

"Spanish," Aaron replied with equal sternness in his voice. "You need this more than I do."

Kyle scowled when Aaron dropped his eyes back down to his textbook. "We should still do Algebra first," Kyle pressed. He knew he was being stubborn but for some reason he loved the way Aaron looked at him with such force.

Aaron sighed and lifted his head. "Eres mi todo," he said and Kyle's eyebrows furrowed together. "Do you know what that means?" Kyle slowly shook his head. Aaron grinned. "Then grab your Spanish textbook and sit your ass down next to me.

Kyle felt something flutter in his stomach at the way Aaron did that. It was an order but it was kind. _"God, that was kind of a turn on."_

Kyle quickly spun around as he groaned internally to himself. He grabbed his Spanish textbook and notebook before he walked over to sit down on the edge of his bed. He took his time setting his books down and then sliding to lay next to Aaron in the same position as him. He opened his books and Aaron started to work through the words with him.

The words rolled off Aaron's tongue with ease, like it was second nature to him. Kyle followed along with intensity as he listened and took notes. His mind would skip occasionally when their hands would brush together or when Aaron would lean close to him so he could feel his breath pass over his neck and ear, but then he would quickly snap back to listening. An hour passed of the two boys focusing diligently on their work when Aaron's phone suddenly started to ring from his pocket. He quickly pulled the device out of his pocket to look at the screen.

"My mom," he said and lifted himself up to his knees. "I'll be right back." Kyle laid still as Aaron climbed over him. He shuttered as the brunet's hand gently brushed along his lower back in an almost intentional kind of way, but Kyle knew better than to think that way. "Hi mom," Aaron said with a light tone as he quickly stepped out of the room. Kyle kept his eyes on his book but couldn't help listening to Aaron's voice that echoed into the room from the hallway. "Yeah, I'm at a friend's house. Kyle's. Yes, that Kyle." Kyle turned his head slightly. His brain worked around why he would say that. "Yeah? No, that's okay. I'm having dinner here so it's fine. Just wake me up when you get home." Aaron paused for a moment and then laughed lightly. "I know, it's just habit. You're to blame for it," he said and Kyle suddenly heard something he hadn't heard before in the brunet. Sadness. "I love you too, mom. I'll see you later."

Kyle quickly looked back down at his textbook as the footsteps returned. Aaron stopped in the doorway. Kyle fidgeted with the sleeve of his shirt as he pretended to read the words in front of him but failed miserably.

"Kyle?" Aaron called out.

Kyle made a small noise in the back of his throat and turned his head to look across the room at his friend. Aaron's eyebrow was lifted quizzically. Kyle knew that look well. It was the same look his mother gave him when she was about to scold him for something bad he did behind her back. He was caught.

"I was eavesdropping," Kyle confessed and twisted a curly lock of hair around his index finger. Aaron hummed lightly as he walked over and sat backwards in Kyle's desk chair. "Your mom have to work late again?"

"It's nothing new," Aaron said as he spun his chair side to side and stared at the floor. "I can't blame her. Being a nurse is…hard."

"Still, it must suck spending so much time on your own," Kyle explained.

Aaron smiled. "I don't really spend a whole lot of time alone, not since you guys came along. Stan's obsessed with my animals and Kenny loves my sandwiches too much."

Kyle laughed and nodded. "Can you blame them? You literally found the best way to both of their hearts," he said.

"Still have yet to find yours," Aaron said as he looked up. Kyle blushed. Aaron laughed and ran his fingers through his hair. It was a mannerism that Kyle was really starting to enjoy. "Man, you are so easy to make embarrassed."

Kyle quickly scrambled to his knees to reach back to grab one of his pillows. "Shut up!" he yelled as he whipped it at Aaron. The brunet laughed and held on to the pillow as he quickly stood and tackled Kyle. The pillow was pressed to Kyle's face as he fell back. He was blinded for a moment before he grabbed the thick down filled pillow to toss it off. He was began to sit up, not realizing Aaron was leaning over him until his nose connected painfully with the brunet's hard forehead.

"Ah!" Aaron shouted and laughed.

"Fuck," Kyle groaned as he covered his nose and mouth with his hands and let his head fall back against his mattress. His stinging eyes were closed to try to force back the small tears as he chuckled.

"Dude, are you alright?" Aaron asked between laughs.

Kyle opened his eyes and froze. Aaron was still hovering over him. His chestnut hair fell forward around his face and his gold eyes glowed. He had a hand placed on both sides of Kyle's head to keep himself propped up. One of his knees was beside Kyle and the other was placed strategically between Kyle's legs so they weren't touching. Kyle noticed the distance between them and suddenly craved for it to disappear. He didn't want anything between them. He parted his hands to let them fall against the mattress next to Aaron's hands and smiled. Aaron's smile widened quickly before it disappeared and he looked worried.

"Kyle, your nose is bleeding," he said in a panic.

Kyle quickly lifted a hand back to his face to touch his fingertip to the cold liquid that slowly formed from his nostril. He held his hand in front of his face to look at the crimson liquid and blinked. Aaron was quickly off him and Kyle couldn't help but feel a bit sad they were no longer so close.

"Come on," Aaron said as he grabbed Kyle's wrist to pull him off the bed.

Kyle followed him down the hall to the bathroom. Aaron flipped on the light switch and gave Kyle a quick shove as he pinched his nose that was beginning to bleed more.

"There's a first aid kit in there," Kyle said as he pointed to the closet.

"Sit down," Aaron ordered as he pointed to the bathtub and started to search through the closet.

Kyle walked over and sat down on the edge of the tub as Aaron pulled out the first aid kit his mother always kept well stocked. Kyle had his head tilted back as he tried to keep the bleeding at bay. He heard the clatter of the first aid kit being set down beside him and then hands suddenly touched his knees. He flinched. His head tilted forward but Aaron quickly grabbed the sides of his head to make him tilt back.

"Keep your head back or you'll bleed all over yourself," Aaron said. He was kneeling between Kyle's legs and the idea made Kyle's insides turn. The first aid kit opened with a click and Aaron rummaged through the items inside. "Okay, tilt your head forward."

Kyle did so without argument. Aaron quickly grabbed his hand to remove it and then pressed a thick gauze to his nose. Aaron held the fabric in place and his other hand cradled the back of his head. Kyle's heart thumped hard in his chest. The tension was back between them.

"You—You should be a nurse," Kyle said, hoping to break the thick tension.

Aaron smiled. "Funny you should say that," he replied. His index finger gave a gentle stroke to the back of Kyle's head and he almost didn't catch it.

"What? Are you secretly one?" Kyle asked.

Aaron shook his head. "No, but I want to be one," he said and let his eyes shift down slightly from Kyle's intense gaze. "I know it's hard, but my mom has done it for years. I see what she does, how she helps, and I can't help but want to do the same."

Kyle's eyes slowly narrowed slightly. Something clicked together in his head. "Is that why you wanted help with Algebra?" he asked and Aaron's eyes quickly shot back up to his. "You said your grade wasn't good enough. You meant for school, right?"

Aaron laughed. "Your mind is impressive," he said and his hand moved away from the back of his head. "How the hell did you piece that together?"

Kyle shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. My mind, it just works like that sometimes."

"It's amazing," Aaron said and Kyle felt the boy's hand press to the outside of his thigh. His breath hitched in his throat.

"I—I want to be a lawyer," Kyle said, distracting himself from the touch.

"You'd be a great lawyer," Aaron replied in a low voice.

Kyle blushed. "You think so?" he asked.

Aaron nodded enthusiastically. "Absolutely. You're amazing, Kyle."

" _Yer nothin'!"_

" _Shut the fuck up!"_

Kyle smiled and lifted his hand. His fingers gently brushed Aaron's hair aside. The touch made the brunet boy's eyes widen before the corner of his mouth turned up slightly. The tension was far gone and there was something else Kyle couldn't quite put his finger on that lingered in its place.

* * *

 **Put Aaron's line through Google Translate if you want a bit of gush.**

 **Yes, I used Google Translate. No, I don't know Spanish worth s***! (If it's wrong, I do apologize friends)**

 **Are ya'll ready for the next chapter? Well, I definitely am. :D**


	4. Chapter Four: A Mess Like Me

**Chapter Four**

"Do you guys want to order Chinese food?" Aaron asked as he stared at the corkboard full of pinned up takeout menus next to his fridge.

Stan was too busy petting the black and white cat that had fallen absolutely in love with him. Anytime they came over to Aaron's, Periwinkle came out of whatever hiding place he was in to immediately find Stan's lap. Kyle sat in the stool next to Stan and leaned forward with his elbows on top of the counter. He was staring. He knew he was staring, but Kenny wasn't around to tease him about it and Stan was too oblivious to notice.

Aaron quickly turned and Kyle straightened in his seat. He cleared his throat loudly as he shoved his hands into his lap. "Yeah, Chinese food sounds great."

It was Wednesday. The boys had made it through another boring day of school and elected to hang out at Aaron's for the night. Kenny, unfortunately, was stuck with babysitting duty. He didn't hate spending the time with his little sister, but he did hate the fact that his parents were still pawning the duty off to him while they went out and got plastered on what little money they had.

"City Wok it is," Aaron said as he turned back around and plucked the menu off the board.

Keys suddenly jingled from outside the kitchen. All three boys simultaneously spun around to face the noise. Periwinkle jumped down from Stan's lap at the sound of the front door shutting. "Aaron? Sweetie? Are you home?" a soft, kind voice carried through the house.

Kyle quickly turned his head back. Aaron was grinning wide. It was mid-October and the boys had managed to go two months without ever running into Aaron's mother, until then. "In the kitchen, mom!" Aaron called out as he set the menu down on top of the counter.

The short woman stepped into the kitchen and stopped. Her dark blonde hair was up in a messy ponytail, mascara was slightly smudged at the corner of her right eye, and she had identical eyes to Aaron's. She wore dark blue scrubs with comfortable sneakers and a sweater over top that was a few sizes too big. Kyle recognized the sweater. He had seen it in one of the photos in the living room being worn by Aaron's father.

"Oh my! There are people here!" the woman exclaimed. "Aaron, there are mysterious people in my kitchen."

"Yes, there is mother," Aaron said as he walked over to hug his mother. It was such a warm hug that Kyle and Stan could feel the love from it.

"Are you going to introduce me to the mysterious people?" the woman asked in a whispered tone but loud enough for Kyle and Stan to hear and laugh at.

Aaron let go of his mother. He wrapped a long arm around his mother's shoulder. Kyle immediately settled on the fact that Aaron got his height from his father. His mother was more than a foot shorter than her son. She could have been the same height as Kyle's mom, but it was a bit deceptive with how skinny she was.

"Mom, I want you to meet Stan," Aaron said as he pointed to Stan who stood from his seat to quickly walk over and shake the woman's hand. "Stan, this is my mom, Elizabeth."

"Liz is fine," the woman said quickly to Stan who smiled and nodded before he took a step back.

"And that is Kyle," Aaron said and there was something in his tone.

Liz quickly turned her head to look up at her son. The brunet rolled his eyes as he nodded. They were having an inaudible conversation with each other. Liz slipped from her son's arm to quickly walk over and threw her arms around Kyle's neck. He almost toppled off the stool. Aaron closed his eyes as he slowly shook his head in shame.

"It is so nice to meet you, Kyle," Liz whispered.

Kyle slowly let his hands touch the back of the woman's shoulders and he laughed gently. "It's nice to meet you too."

Liz pulled away from the hug and smiled. She had the same smile as Aaron's. It made Kyle feel warm in his chest. Liz placed her hands on the sides of Kyle's neck. "Such beautiful eyes," Liz said and shook her head slightly.

"Mom!" Aaron shouted.

The woman jumped. She quickly turned and Aaron was giving her a look only she could read properly. "Right! Motherly duties. Dinner?" she asked.

"We were going to order from City Wok," Aaron answered.

"Oh! That's fantastic. Order whatever you want. Just make sure there's General Tao's," Liz explained.

Aaron rolled his eyes. "Yes ma'am," he replied teasingly with a smile.

"Go ahead. I'm going to jump in the shower," she said and walked over to give Aaron's cheek a small kiss before she stepped out of the room.

Aaron shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans as he looked back and forth between Stan and Kyle who had identical amused expressions of their faces. "So, that's my mom."

"Dude, she's freaking awesome," Stan said with a wide grin.

"Yeah, she's so chill," Kyle added.

Aaron smiled sweetly. Relief rolled off his shoulders. He removed his hands from his pockets and walked over to pick up the takeout menu off the counter. "So, what do you guys want to eat?"

Kyle admired how different Liz was from most of the other moms he had met. She was kind and caring and obviously adored her son, but she was also laid back and fun like a friend. She left to pick up the food and came back with a cake and movies as well. Also, something Kyle caught on to quickly, she always kissed her son before she left the room he was in. It was always a quick peck on the cheek but she did it every single time without fail. Even when her hands were full, she still leaned down to kiss him as he met her halfway.

"It looks like Periwinkle has taken a liking to you, Stan," Liz pointed out as she stabbed a piece of chicken on her plate.

They were all in the living room as an action movie she picked up from the store played on the television. Stan was sitting on the recliner with the foot rest up. He held his plate on his lap as Periwinkle curled up next to his feet. Liz sat in the arm chair across the coffee table from Stan and Kyle sat next to Aaron on the couch.

"Aaron said you have a dog too? And a hedgehog?" Stan asked, his childish excitement returning.

Liz nodded. "Yeah, we're going to pick them both up this weekend while we're in Boulder," she explained.

Aaron stabbed a piece of chicken on his plate and paused. Kyle noticed the tension in the boy's shoulder that he quickly shook off as he shoved the food into his mouth.

"Can—Can I come over when you guys get back? I've never seen a hedgehog before," Stan asked, his eyes wide with anticipation.

Liz laughed. "Stan, you boys are allowed here whenever you like. The door is always open," she explained with a smile. "You are welcomed here."

Stan nodded rapidly. Liz shifted her eyes from Stan to look over at Kyle. Kyle locked eyes with her and for some reason he felt like there was something more to her words she was trying to get across that he couldn't understand.

" _This damn family is so cryptic."_

Friday, finally. Kyle sighed into his open locker. He was looking forward to the weekend even though Aaron was going to be in Boulder for most of it. That made his lips twitch down into a frown slightly. Neither Aaron nor Liz would say exactly why they were going to Boulder but there was something bothering Aaron about it. His face flashed with sadness a few times since Liz mentioned going to Boulder on Wednesday night. Kyle wanted to know why but he was also scared of that sad expression that would form on Aaron's usually happy face.

"Kyle." Speak of the devil. He was standing behind Kyle with his hands shoved into his pockets.

Kyle turned. He was surprised he didn't jump at the sound of his name being called out so suddenly. Aaron no longer startled him but excited him. He loved hearing his name roll off the brunet's tongue. He wondered what it sounded like breathless, with a soft sigh, with a moan, with a—

" _Back the fuck up! Alright Broflovski, get it together!"_ Kyle screamed at himself and looked up at Aaron's worried face. "What's wrong?"

Aaron opened his mouth but immediately snapped it shut. His fingers threaded through his messy hair to push it all back. He was nervous about something. It was uncommon to see him in such a state. Kyle enjoyed seeing him nervous, but not like this.

"Okay, promise not to laugh?" Aaron asked. Kyle's eyebrows knitted together in confusion and curiosity. Aaron rolled his eyes. "Just promise."

"I promise," Kyle replied in surprise.

"Do you know how to tie a tie?" Aaron asked.

Kyle tilted his head slightly. Confusion and curiosity strong on his face. "Yeah, of course I do. Why?"

"Okay, you see, there's this thing this weekend. I'm—um—okay—," Aaron stopped and his hand went up to run his fingers through his hair again but Kyle quickly reached up to grab his wrist to stop him.

"Aaron, what's going on?" Kyle asked, worry thick in his tone.

Aaron lowered his hand and Kyle continued to hang on to his wrist without thinking about letting go. "My mom and I are going to a funeral in Boulder. It's a funeral for this guy who used to work with my dad. I know him a bit, not too much though. Anyways, I just need to know if you can tie my tie before I leave tonight. The funeral is tomorrow morning but my mom wanted to leave for Boulder tonight when she gets off work so we can spend some time with the wife and—," Aaron was blabbering bad.

"Aaron," Kyle said with a small smile as he gave Aaron's wrist a small squeeze.

Aaron let out a heavy sigh. His eyes fixed on Kyle. There was something on the tip of the brunet's tongue. Kyle knew he could speak if he wanted to but instead he waited. Aaron suddenly took a step forward and Kyle let go of his wrist. There was barely any space between them.

"Kyle, would you—?" Aaron started to ask but stopped himself. He sighed as he shifted his gaze away.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "You are being the absolute worst to talk to right now," he explained with a small smile.

"Shut up, this isn't easy, okay?" Aaron snapped back a bit more harshly than he had anticipated but Kyle didn't mind it. "I haven't been to a funeral since—."

Kyle's face relaxed as Aaron's eyes shifted around him. "Since your dad's?"

Aaron's eyes finally landed on him. He frowned. "Stop that."

"Stop what?" Kyle asked.

"Being smart, I hate it. I can't hide things from you when you're smart," Aaron pouted.

Kyle grinned. He shrugged his shoulders. "Can't help it, sorry. You're just too easy to read," he said.

Aaron shook his head. "Never mind, this was stupid," he muttered as he turned.

"Hey," Kyle said and quickly grabbed Aaron's hand. The soft connection sent a shock through Kyle's arm. Aaron quickly spun back around to meet Kyle's emerald eyes. "What else did you want to ask?"

Aaron swallowed. He looked away. Kyle kept a tight grip on his hand so he wouldn't move. "I know it's stupid to ask and I'll understand if you say no, but, would you come to Boulder with me?" Aaron asked and closed his eyes. "I don't do well with this kind of stuff but I think I'd do better if I had a friend with me and—."

"I'll come," Kyle interrupted.

Aaron's eyes opened and he quickly turned his head to look back down at the red head's smiling face. Aaron's eyes widened and his mouth was turned up again in his regular smile. "Really?" he beamed.

Kyle nodded. "I have to check with my mom first, but yeah. If you want me to go with you, I'll do it," he explained. "And that way I can do your tie just before the funeral so it looks nice and fresh."

Aaron suddenly moved and Kyle wasn't sure how but he was standing with his hands on the brunet's biceps as he cupped Kyle's cheeks to kiss his forehead. Kyle felt as if his heart was going to leap out his throat. The kiss was soft and warm and far too brief for Kyle's liking. Aaron pulled away and gently ran his thumb under Kyle's eye.

"Thanks man," he said and then spun on his heel to turn away and start down the hall. "Now let's go!"

Kyle was frozen but managed to pull himself out of his daze to quickly grab his bag and slam his locker shut.

"Where are they going?" Stan asked as he watched Kyle quickly catch up to Aaron down the hall.

Kenny's hand clamped down on Stan's shoulder as he sighed loudly. "Stan, I think I need to inform you of something that may come as a shock to you."

Kyle opened the door to his house. He turned around to look back at Aaron who waved across the yard from beside his car. Kyle managed to convince Aaron to go home to pack and wait for his response from there. His mother would not allow him to go to Boulder without fight and Kyle didn't want Aaron to see it if it got a little too out of hand.

"Bubbie, is that you?" Sheila called out from the kitchen.

Kyle carefully took his boots off. "Yeah ma," he called back and took his coat off to hang it up. He set his bag down on the floor and made his way to the kitchen where his mother was doing dishes.

"How was school?" his mother asked without looking away from her job.

Kyle walked over to lean against the counter, his hands at his sides to grip the edge. "It was good. Uneventful," Kyle answered. Sheila hummed lightly. Kyle tapped his fingers against the bottom of the counter's lip. He chewed gently on his bottom lip before he decided to just ask. "Mom, can I go to Boulder tonight with Aaron and his mom?"

Sheila stopped to turned to face her son. "Whatever for, Bubbie?" she asked both curiously and judgingly.

"Well, they're going to get Aaron's pets from a family friend and they—," Kyle stopped himself. He griped the counter tightly before he pushed off from it gently and turned to face his mother. "They're going to a funeral tomorrow and Aaron asked me to be there to support him."

Sheila stared at Kyle for a moment. He could see her thoughts moving in her head and then she smiled. "Alright Kyle," she answered.

Kyle blinked in surprise. "Re—Really?" he asked.

"You are getting older now. I trust you to be responsible. Just make sure to keep your phone on you and message me sometimes so I don't worry," she explained.

Kyle flung himself forward to throw his arms around his mother in a tight embrace. Sheila laughed, surprised by her son's sudden excited demeanor before he bounced out of the room. "Thanks ma!" he called over his shoulder.

 **dude, I got the go ahead. gonna start packing now!**

He sent the message through his phone as he climbed the stairs to his room. He cradled the phone in his hand as he waited patiently for the response. His phone chimed and he stopped with his back pressed against his closed bedroom door.

 **SWEET! Pick you up at 6!**

Kyle smiled at the message and pushed off the door to immediately start shoving clothes into a bag. He packed a set of regular clothes consisting of jeans and a t-shirt, a set of formal clothes of black pants and a dressy sweater with a tie, and a set of pyjamas. He also threw a book into his bag just in case he would get bored and his travelling toothbrush. He dropped his bag by the door when his mother called him down for dinner. He ate far too quickly. His father eyed him from across the table but didn't ask why he was so excited.

Six o'clock clicked on the clock and Kyle quickly stood at the sound of a car horn honking outside. He kissed his mom, gave Ike a quick pat on the head, hugged his dad, and then ran out the door with his bag over his shoulder. The muscle car was parked beside the curb like usual. The passenger side door swung open and Aaron leaned back in his seat. Kyle slid into the passenger seat and shut the door.

"Ready?" Aaron asked with a smile.

Kyle nodded enthusiastically. "We're listening to my music this time," Liz suddenly said from the back seat as she leaned forward between the two front seats. "Your music is lame anyways."

"Ouch mom, that's a bit harsh," Aaron replied and made the car lurch forward. Liz fumbled to put in her CD she grabbed from the console between Aaron and Kyle's seat. Kyle was pleasantly surprised that alternative rock started to play from the burned CD. Liz sat back in her seat and Aaron looked over at Kyle who was smiling. "It's tradition," Aaron spoke up and Kyle gave him a confused look. "We each made a CD with a playlist and take turns on each drive playing a different playlist. No one can criticize the playlist and it can't be played more than once on a trip."

Kyle chuckled lightly. "That's a great idea. Better than the radio or listening to one person's crappy taste in music," he said.

"It was my husband's idea," Liz added from the back seat. Kyle turned in his seat to face the woman who was rubbing her eye with her knuckles. She looked exhausted. "He was always good at ideas," she said and yawned loudly.

"Mom, maybe you should try to sleep a bit," Aaron said as he quickly peaked at his mother through his rear-view mirror.

The woman nodded and let her head rest against her arm against the window. Kyle turned his head back to look over at Aaron who was focused back on the road. His finger tapped against the gear shifter. Kyle frowned slightly and pressed the side of his face against his seat.

"You're staring," Aaron said without looking away from the road.

"Mhm," Kyle answered with a quiet hum.

"You're making me uncomfortable. Stop it," Aaron said with a smile. Kyle turned in his seat to sit properly again and rubbed his palms along his jeans. There was a question lingering on his tongue but he was afraid to ask. Aaron sighed loudly. "What is it?" Kyle shrugged his shoulders but didn't respond. "Come on," Aaron pressed and he reached over to gently ruffle Kyle's hair. "What's on your mind?"

"I—I don't know if I can ask," Kyle said as he gently shook his head.

Aaron let his fingers run through the edge of Kyle's hair. "You can ask me anything. I'll answer. I promise."

Kyle slowly blinked. The soft touch to his head was sending sparks through his entire body. "Can you…tell me about your dad?" Kyle asked.

Aaron's hand immediately twitched away from Kyle's head to rest back on the shifter. There was a shift in the air but it wasn't bad. It was somber but relaxed. Aaron tightened his grip around the steering wheel. "He died when I was young, so I don't remember a whole lot, but what I do remember is happiness. He was always smiling, always happy. I remember him never letting me cry. When I fell off my bike and scraped my knee, he wouldn't let me cry. When I came home after my first crush rejected me, he wouldn't let me cry. He was always trying to get me and mom to smile. He never wanted to see us sad," Aaron explained and loosened his grip on the steering wheel.

"How did he die?" Kyle asked, his voice low.

Aaron inhaled slowly. "It was late at night in the middle of summer. Mom and I were asleep and he was on call. An apartment fire. It was bad. He rushed over to help. We never even knew he left until the next morning when the marshal showed up at the door. There was a family trapped on the sixth level. My dad rushed back into the building to get them. He got them out through the window but he couldn't escape. Damian Carmichael, hero of Boulder."

" _Damian?"_

Kyle's eyes narrowed and he shifted his eyes to the wrist of the hand that rested on the gear shifter. The two beaded bracelets Aaron always wore were there. Over the months Kyle had gotten a few good glances at the bracelets. One of them had Aaron's name on it and the other had the name Damian on it. Kyle knew he should have asked but never got up the courage. Aaron flinched gently when Kyle's hand carefully slipped around his arm, just above the bracelets. Kyle's fingers stroked at the beads.

"We made them when I was five, I think. We never took them off except to shower and sleep. Dad took his off for the night and left in such a hurry he forgot it on his end table," Aaron explained.

Kyle's grip tightened around his arm and he frowned instinctively. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

"Hey," Aaron said and shifted his hand so he could grab Kyle's. He kept his attention on the road as he gently stroked his thumb over Kyle's. "Don't apologize. You didn't know him. You didn't do anything. There's no reason to apologize."

Kyle nodded and sniffled loudly. He rubbed his sleeve against his eyes and then his nose. "I know, I just—I shouldn't have asked."

Aaron laughed. "Why? I'm glad you asked," he said with a wide smile. "I felt bad dropping the bomb on you guys but you were all so cool about it, it was actually kind of startling. Then you guys didn't ask anything. It was strange. I actually wanted to tell you guys more, but I didn't want to come off as the crazy kid with the dead parent."

"Trust me, that doesn't make you crazy," Kyle said and struggled to hold back the small shake in his voice.

"Kyle," Aaron said and he let go of his hand to reach over and squeeze Kyle's knee. The red head's face turned the same colour as his hair. The long fingers gently squeezed and Kyle clamped his bottom lip between his teeth. "Don't cry, okay? I don't ever want to see you cry."

The urge to want to cry washed away as Aaron's words wrapped around him inside the cab of the car. The boy's hand relaxed on Kyle's knee but stayed there. Kyle leaned as far back into his seat as he could. He was fighting back the thoughts that invaded his mind.

"Are you okay?" Aaron asked after a while.

" _Aside from the need to be taken immediately? I'm great."_

Kyle slowly nodded. "Yeah, I'm good," he answered and Aaron slowly removed his hand, letting his fingertips gently brush along Kyle's leg.

The rest of the ride was painful for Kyle. The lower half of his body was on fire. He struggled to keep up his conversation with Aaron as Liz slept peacefully in the back seat. The usual two-hour ride was cut down to just under an hour and a half with Aaron's driving. When they arrived to park in the driveway of the two-story suburban home, Kyle couldn't help but gawk at it. It was at least double the size of his house and even in the dark Kyle could see the clean white panelling and blue shutters on the windows.

"Mom," Aaron said as he reached back to gently shake the woman awake. "We're here. Get up."

The woman moaned and slowly opened her eyes. Aaron gave her knee a gentle pat before stepping out of the car. Kyle followed his direction. Liz practically fell out of the back seat and stretched her arms over her head.

"Oh, that was a good nap. I forgot how comfortable that car was. Nice and spacious. Good for activities too," she explained and looked at Aaron with a devilish smile.

"Oh, god, mom!" Aaron yelled loudly in disgust as he reached into the back seat to grab her bag and threw it at her. "That's gross. You're gross."

The front door to the house suddenly swung open and an older woman with greying brown hair stepped onto the front porch. "Lizzy!" the woman screeched and Liz ran up the path towards the steps to give the woman a tight hug.

Aaron reached back into the back seat of the car and Kyle couldn't help but drink in the sight of skin as the bottom of his shirt rode up slightly to reveal the low cut of his jeans.

" _You have a dirty, dirty mind Broflovski."_

Kyle quickly shook his head and looked away. Aaron slammed the door shut and grabbed Kyle's hand. "Come on," the taller boy ordered and started to lead Kyle towards the house.

The older woman quickly ushered everyone inside to shut the door. Her name was Deborah. Her and Liz were very close and she would even turn to Aaron occasionally to gently pinch his cheeks as she complimented his height or his eyes or his overall handsomeness.

"This is Kyle," Liz introduced the awkward teen who had been silently standing off to the side. "He's Aaron's…friend. I hope you don't mind that he came."

Deborah shook her head quickly. "Of course not! Welcome, Kyle," the woman said brightly. "Come, I'll show you to your rooms and then you'll have to come back down to meet the family." Kyle followed closely behind Aaron. Deborah was leading them all up the stairs to the second floor. She opened the door to Liz's room first and then opened the door across the hall. "I do apologize but you will have to share a room. With the family here, there's a limited amount of space. I hope you don't mind."

Aaron shook his head. "Not at all, thank you," he said with his signature smile as he stepped inside with Kyle close behind him.

"Well, make yourself at home and whenever you're ready, come join us in the den," Deborah said and closed the door behind her as she left.

Kyle chuckled as he set his bag down and sat on the bed. "She's the wife?" he asked and Aaron nodded with a groan. "She is surprisingly chipper for a woman who just lost her husband."

Aaron sat down next to Kyle. The mattress was extremely soft and automatically shifter Aaron close when he settled down. "Deborah's always been like that," Aaron said and then flopped onto his back with his arm draped over his eyes. "Al was big on celebrating life and not mourning death. He always talked about how he wanted a big party when he passed, not a funeral. Deborah was not for the idea at first, but she quickly warmed up to it."

Kyle hummed quietly under his breath and laid down next to his friend. "That sounds like a really good way of dealing with it," he explained.

"Or it's the perfect way to cover up the denial," Aaron said.

Kyle turned his head to look at his friend who was still covering most of his face. "Who invited Mr. Pessimistic to the party?" he asked teasingly and jabbed a finger into Aaron's ribs.

Aaron grunted. "Hey," he said as he quickly grabbed Kyle's hand to pin it between them. "Hands to yourself, Mr. Broflovski."

Kyle laughed and turned his head back to look up at the ceiling. Aaron didn't let go of Kyle's hand and the smaller boy prayed that he wouldn't. Aaron's hand was warm and soft. He was gently rubbing his thumb over the skin on the back of Kyle's hand. Kyle imagined threading their fingers together and squeezing tight.

The quiet knock on the door made Aaron quickly sit up. Their hands disconnected and Kyle slowly sat up. Aaron walked over to the door to open it. Liz stood on the other side with a smile on her face. "You two having fun?" she asked as she leaned over slightly to peak around Aaron at Kyle who was pushing himself up to his feet.

"Mom," Aaron growled in a low, warning tone that Liz laughed at.

"Come on, everyone's waiting. Let's go you two."

The family consisted of five people. Deborah introduced each of them. Al's parents, Deborah's sister, Al and Deborah's daughter, and Al's brother. They were all just as weirdly energetic and happy as Deborah. Kyle sat between Aaron and Liz on a deep couch with a cup of tea cradled between his hands on his lap. The warmth from the mug was soothing as he listened to the conversations around him. Harold, Al's father, was talking to Aaron as his wife, Irene, constantly shouted at him to _stop interrogating the poor boy_. Liz was deep into a conversation with Deborah and her daughter, Jill. Al's brother, Robert, was quiet. He seemed content sipping at his beer.

"Excuse me, Kyle, right?" Irene asked and Kyle quickly lifted his head.

"Yes?" he asked in response.

The woman smiled. The wrinkles on her face deepened. "I'm sorry, but, is that your natural hair colour?" she asked.

Kyle reached a hand up to gently tug at a curly lock. "Yeah," he answered in a flat tone.

"Why, that is an absolutely beautiful shade of red. And the curls are incredible. Don't you agree, Harold?" Irene said as she jabbed her elbow into her husband's side.

The man snorted and nodded. Kyle felt a happy twinge of pain in his chest. His hair was the one thing he always hated about himself. The colour. The curls. All of it. It sucked. Irene though, she blew all those insecurities out of the water in a matter of seconds.

"I had orange hair. Ugly as all hell. It wasn't curly either, it was perfectly straight. I looked like I stepped out of a horror movie," Irene explained and Kyle couldn't help but chuckle.

"Oh, you looked beautiful darling. How else did you get me?" Harold said loudly. He obviously struggled with his hearing.

"Because you have low standards, Harold. You weren't much to look at either," Irene said and Kyle's shoulders shrugged as he laughed. "That is the key to love, Kyle. Find someone with the same issues as you. If you're ugly, find someone uglier. If you snore, find someone who snores louder."

Kyle nodded in understanding. "I'll keep that in mind," he replied and turned his head when Aaron's knee gently knocked against his. The brunet smiled and Kyle mirrored it back before he lifted his mug to take a long sip.

Everyone retired to their rooms except for Liz, Deborah, and Jill who stayed up gossiping. Kyle wanted to stay awake but when he couldn't stop yawning, Aaron gave his knee a solid pat before he stood. "Let's go," Aaron ordered as he turned away.

"Good night you two!" Liz called out after the two boys as they exited the room to climb the stairs.

"I'll change in the bathroom," Kyle said as he picked up his bag.

"Why?" Aaron asked as he lifted his bag onto the bed. "We change in the locker room all the time. This isn't any different."

" _It's completely different!"_ Kyle nodded. "I guess so," he replied in a small mutter.

He set his bag down on the arm chair in the corner and unzipped it. He laid out his clothes he had put together to the funeral and laid it over the arm of the chair. He kept his back turned to the middle of the room where Aaron was. It was the easiest way to avoid any sort of disaster. He changed his shirt first and then his pants, never removing his boxers. When he turned, Aaron was in grey pyjama bottoms with no shirt. The brunet tossed his bag aside and met Kyle's gaze.

"I don't sleep with a shirt on. It's constricting. That okay?" he asked.

Kyle cleared his throat and nodded. He quickly walked over to the bed and lifted the covers to climb under. He laid on his back and shifted his eyes to the side to watch as Aaron carefully worked at removing the bracelets from his wrist. The first one released with ease but the second was proving difficult. Kyle sat up and held his hand out.

"Here, just let me do it," he ordered.

Aaron rolled his eyes dramatically. "Yes sir," he said and shifted to kneel on the bed as he offered his hand to Kyle. The bracelet released easily and Kyle laid it in Aaron's palm as he let his fingertips brush gently against the boy's skin. "Thanks," Aaron said in a low voice.

Kyle smiled. "It's no problem," he said and then laid back down with his back facing the middle of the bed.

Aaron set the bracelet on the end table before he shifted under the blankets. The lamp snapped off and silence took over the dark room. Kyle looked over his shoulder carefully once his eyes adjusted to the new darkness and noticed Aaron slept on his stomach as he hugged the large pillows to his face. His head was facing away so Kyle couldn't quite tell if he was awake or asleep. Kyle rolled his head back and squeezed his eyes shut. He wasn't sure if he'd sleep at all, especially with the thoughts rolling through his head that created a problem in his lower extremities.

" _Dirty, dirty mind Broflovski."_

* * *

 **Okay, this wasn't as exciting as I had hoped. I had change some things (ugh)!**

 **This story is a bit more vanilla than my last story but trust me, it will be worth the wait.**

 **So. Damn. Worth it!**


	5. Chapter Five: You Are Everything

**I apologize to anyone who actually likes Eric Cartman, I'm such an asshole to him. XD**

 **I might be nice to him...someday.**

* * *

 **Chapter Five**

Kyle sighed. Soft touches moved along his chest from his stomach up to his neck. Warmth was pressed to his back. He was slowly coming out of his sleep in a thick haze. The soft sheets on top of him were different than what he was used to. Then he remembered, he wasn't at home. He wasn't in his bed. He had left South Park. He was in Boulder, in some random woman's house he didn't know. He felt the warmth behind him shift and warm air ghosted over the back of his neck.

" _Wait…"_

Kyle's eyes snapped open. The fog blew away. He slowly lowered his head to see the long, beige arm laying over his torso as the hand rested on his shoulder. Another arm was under the pillow under his head. Against his back he could feel the solid muscles and warmth of a chest. The air on the back of his neck was from a sighing breath.

"Mm," the body moaned.

Kyle's face burned and he had to keep himself from panicking. He carefully slipped out of the sleepy grip on him to stand next to the bed. Aaron whined quietly in his sleep at the loss of contact and rolled onto his stomach to hug the pillow to his face again. He was spread across the bed from corner to corner and Kyle couldn't help but smile.

"Beautiful."

Kyle froze when he realized it was out loud and not in his mind. He quickly stepped away from the bed and stood at the armchair. He frantically changed from his pyjamas to the dress pants, collared shirt, tie, and sweater he had waiting. He grabbed his toothbrush before he quietly stepped to the door to open it and almost screamed. Liz was standing in a short black dress with her hair up and her makeup on as she had her hand up ready to knock on the door.

"Oh! Kyle! You're already up and dressed?" she asked in surprise.

"I—I'm an early riser," Kyle said in a low voice which was a complete and utter lie. "I was trying not to wake him up."

Liz laughed as she shook her head. "Oh trust me, it takes quite a bit to wake him up. He's notorious for sleeping through his alarms so he must make sure he has two or three going off at the same time. Don't worry, I've got this. You finish getting ready and go get some breakfast from downstairs."

Liz stepped past Kyle and he shuffled out of the room to the bathroom. He was searching for toothpaste in the drawers when he suddenly heard Aaron yell, "Fuck! Mom! Holy—really?!" followed by a loud roar of laughter from Liz.

Kyle chuckled as he slowly shook his head. He found the toothpaste to brush his teeth diligently. When he was done he returned to the room, unaware of the fact that he should have knocked first before he entered as he was in such a heavy trance feeling the phantom touches he woke to. Aaron quickly turned his head when the door opened. He had his shirt and his pants on but neither were done up. Kyle could see the dark blue boxer-briefs that the brunet wore.

"Ah, sorry," Kyle said with a quick shake of his head as he started to back out of the room.

"Dude, come on, I need your help with the tie, remember?" Aaron said as he held up the fabric.

Kyle nodded and quickly stepped back into the room to close the door behind him. Aaron dropped the tie back on the bed and continued to dress himself. Kyle walked over to his bag in the corner and shoved his toothbrush inside.

" _You can do this, Broflovski. Pull your shit together."_

Kyle quickly spun around and walked over to the end of the bed to pick up the tie. On the one side it was black but on the other it had a funky print on it with what looked like dinosaurs. Kyle snorted. "What the hell is this?" he asked.

Aaron turned while finishing with the last few buttons on his shirt. "It's my tie," he said and Kyle's eyebrow lifted as he faced the patterned side towards the taller boy. "What? It's reversible. Good for many occasions."

"It is the mullet of ties," Kyle replied blankly.

Aaron gasped dramatically. "How rude," he teased with a smile. Kyle rolled his eyes. He dropped the tie back on the bed and reached up to grab his own tie that was secured tightly around his neck. Aaron's eyebrows furrowed together. "What are you doing?"

"You're not wearing that. I cannot in good conscious let you wear that tie, so you'll wear mine," Kyle explained as he pulled his tie off to wrap it around Aaron's neck. "My outfit doesn't need a tie. Yours on the other hand, it does or you'll look like you hopped off a catalogue."

Aaron grinned as Kyle worked at making the tie knot. "Is that such a bad thing?" Aaron joked.

Kyle looked up through his lashes briefly before returning to his task at hand. "No," he answered in a low voice.

Aaron hummed triumphantly. Kyle grinned as he continued to work to finish the knot. It was harder to do on someone else, especially when that someone was making his hands shake just by being there, but he did it. He tightened the tie and rolled the collar of Aaron's shirt down over it.

"There, all done," Kyle said as he took a step back with his hands on his hips to admire his handy work.

"It feels weird," Aaron said as he fidgeted with the piece of material.

"It will, but you'll get used to it," Kyle explained.

Aaron let go of it and reached out to put his hand on Kyle's shoulder. Kyle's body froze rigidly as Aaron leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you," he said quietly into Kyle's ear. The warmth of his breath passing over his skin made him shutter. He remembered how he woke to that breath on the back of his neck. Aaron grabbed his jacket off the bed and stepped around Kyle to the door. "Now, let's get some breakfast."

Everyone gathered in the kitchen to munch on pastries and fruit. Kyle was happy to sit between Liz and Irene as he munched on a muffin. Aaron was moving around the kitchen with Deborah setting out food and cleaning up as they went. The small boombox on the counter was playing quiet music when an old timey jazz song suddenly came on.

"Oh! Al loved this song!" Deborah exclaimed loudly as she quickly spun around to turn up the volume. "Aaron, darling, dance with me?"

Aaron set down the tray he was holding on to and reached his hand out towards the older woman. When she took his offering hand, he slowly spun her around, earning a happy laugh from the woman before they stood close to each other as they gently swayed to the music. Harold took his wife's hand to dance with her. Robert excused himself from the entire situation as Jill stood to the side watching. Kyle enjoyed watching the two couples dancing. All the funerals Kyle had been to were quiet, somber. He hated them. They were the worst, but this one was different. Everyone was happy and enjoying the day rather than sulking in their own misery.

"Come on Kyle," Liz suddenly spoke up as she slipped out of the breakfast nook.

"Oh, no, no, I'm—," Kyle protested but Liz grabbed his hand and dragged him off the bench. He quickly dropped his muffin and faced the older woman with slightly pinked cheeks. "I—I don't know how to dance."

Liz smiled. "Don't worry, I'll teach you," she said as she took Kyle's hands to place them where they needed to be. "It's all about rhythm."

Kyle laughed. "I'm Jewish, I don't have rhythm," he said and Liz started to move. He followed along, focusing hard on not stepping on her feet.

"Nonsense, the Jewish people are some of the best dancers, with the exception of Paula Abdul," Liz joked and Kyle laughed. "It's all about having the right partner to dance with."

Deborah let out a loud laugh when Aaron dipped her backwards slightly and she gave his chest a small smack. Kyle quickly dulled the smile that flashed across his face as he turned his attention back to Liz. She was smiling wide. Something mischievous was playing in her mind. Kyle kept his attention on his feet as he stepped with Liz didn't comprehend when he heard Deborah yell, "Switch!"

Liz suddenly threw Kyle and he stumbled until he hit a solid chest. He took a step back and looked up at Aaron who smiled down at him. "Might as well go with it," he said as he offered his hands towards Kyle.

The red head slowly smiled and took his friend's hand. Aaron led the slow-moving dance and Kyle wasn't focused on his feet. He was focused on the careful movements Aaron made. He was focused on Aaron's hand hold his hand and his other hand on his side. The music filled the room and suddenly everything around them melted away. It was just the two of them dancing to the music.

The funeral was less lively than the rest of the time Kyle had spent in Boulder. He kept quiet and stuck mostly to Aaron and Liz. When the service was done, everyone gathered in a large room with dark walls and ugly carpet. Kyle held on to a cup of water with one hand and a finger sandwich in the other. Aaron had excused himself to the bathroom with a small pat on Kyle's shoulder. The red head was alone in a room full of people. He decided to move around the room to stretch his legs that grew weary sitting through the service as the pastor spoke. He made his way to the large doors that led out into the hall and heard familiar voices speaking on the other side. Liz and Deborah were standing in the hall leaning against the wall with small cups of tea in their hands.

"—so much for being here," Deborah said in a low voice.

"Of course. You were there for me when Damian died. It's the least I could do," Liz replied.

Kyle rested his back against the wall and took a bite of his sandwich. He knew he shouldn't eavesdrop but he couldn't help it.

"How are you two doing?" Deborah asked, care and worry in her tone.

"We're both doing well," Liz answered. "Aaron, he's the best I've ever seen since we moved."

"Do you think it has anything to do with his dear friend, Kyle?" Deborah asked and Kyle's head quickly turned at the sound of his name.

Liz exhaled softly. "I've never seen him so fixated on someone before. He's always taking about Kyle. He truly cares about the boy," Liz explained.

Kyle suddenly felt breathless. His chest was tight. He had to set his cup and sandwich down on the small table beside him to keep from dropping them. "He's such a sweet young boy, I can see why Aaron likes him. But, how do you feel about it?"

Kyle held his breath. "I like Kyle, he is a very nice boy. He makes Aaron happy. I just worry about the potential to be hurt if Kyle doesn't feel the same way. Aaron can't take anymore heartache."

"Hey," Aaron suddenly called out over the chatter as he slipped between two people to get to Kyle. Kyle's heart pounded in his ears. "Are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Kyle cleared his throat and shook his head. "I'm fine," he said and started to grin like an idiot.

Aaron was thrown off by the sudden look on Kyle's face. He stepped forward to invade Kyle's space and kept his head next to the red head's. "You're at a wake, Kyle, at least try to look sad," Aaron said and brought his hand up to gently brush Kyle's cheek with his fingers. Kyle instinctively leaned into the touch. "We're almost done here. I promise."

He wasn't wrong. They only stayed for another twenty minutes before they all piled into the van and headed back to Deborah's house. Aaron's tie was off the moment he got inside the van. He untied it to let it hang loosely around his neck and unbuttoned the top few buttons on his shirt. He sat in the back row of the van with Kyle next to him. When they arrived at Deborah's, Aaron practically ran up the stairs to change. They didn't spend much time at Deborah's before they gathered their things and left. Aaron drove the car a few blocks before he stopped out front of another two-story suburban house.

" _Please, not another funeral."_

"Wait here," Aaron said and slid out of the car with Liz.

They both walked up to the house side by side and knocked. The door opened and they stepped into the doorway. Kyle was getting impatient watching the cracked open door that Aaron and his mother disappeared behind. He stood next to the car as he stretched his arms above his head, waiting for the two to return.

"Winston!" Kyle suddenly heard Aaron yell from inside the house. Kyle quickly lifted his head to see a large Bernese mountain dog galloping out of the house towards him. He pressed his back against the car. The dog was huge and at the speed he was at, Kyle was in trouble. "Winston, heel!"

The dog slid to a halt and panted, its tongue hung out of its mouth as it stared up at Kyle. He chuckled quietly and reached out to gently scratch the side of the dog's face. "Oh, Stan's gonna love you," he said as Aaron ran across the front lawn to pant heavily.

"Sorry, Winston doesn't realize he's basically a behemoth," Aaron said as he walked over to open the door to the back seat. "Come on buddy, inside," he coaxed the large dog into the car. The canine followed his master's command into the car so Aaron could close the door.

"Winston? Stan is going to rip you apart for that," Kyle teased.

Aaron sighed loudly. "I know. I can already hear him in my head," he explained.

Liz called back to the man standing inside the house as she stepped off the porch with a cage in her arms. She bounded across the grass so Aaron opened the back door again for her to slide inside next to Winston.

"Ready to go home?" Aaron turned to ask Kyle.

Kyle gently smiled and nodded. The sun set just after they pulled out of Boulder. Liz fell asleep in the back seat again with Winston's head on her lap. The car was quiet except for the playlist Kyle picked from the selection in the centre console. Aaron tapped his fingers against the gear shifter along to the acoustic style song playing through the speakers. Kyle felt antsy. He was shifting in his seat uncomfortably. The conversation he eavesdropped on between Liz and Deborah was stuck playing in his mind.

" _Is it true? Does he like me? Does he…feel the same?"_

Kyle moved his eyes to look at the other boy's fidgeting hand. He ceased a half breath and decided he had enough. He lifted his hand and gently placed it on Aaron's arm to slowly grab his hand. Aaron looked down at their hands, back at the road, then over at Kyle who was staring out the side window to keep the taller boy from seeing his wide smile or rose-coloured cheeks.

"Are—Are you okay?" Aaron asked worriedly and turned his attention back to the road.

Kyle nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'm fine," he answered but didn't let go of Aaron's hand and Aaron didn't pull away. Their warm palms pressed together as they rested their elbows side by side on the centre console. They didn't speak for the rest of the ride and Kyle appreciated the quiet. It was peaceful and he didn't want it to end. But it had to when Aaron stopped the car in front of Kyle's house and let go of the smaller boy's hand to put the car in park. Aaron started to turn his head but stopped when Kyle leaned over the console to kiss him gently on the cheek. "Good night, Aaron. I'll see you Monday."

Aaron was frozen as Kyle grabbed his bag and slid out of the car. He managed to turn his head to watch Kyle quickly jog across his yard to the front porch and ducked inside the front door of his house. "I saw that," Liz said from the back seat and startled Aaron. She smiled visibly when she saw her son jump in his seat.

"Mom, don't—," Aaron started to say with a heavy sigh.

"Tell him how you feel, Aaron. You need to tell him," Liz said as Aaron pulled the car away from the curb. "I didn't wait for your father to tell me. I told him first. You should know before anyone else how important it is to tell people how you feel about them. To not let them slip through your fingers."

"Mom, please—."

"Aaron," Liz said as she reached her hand out to gently squeeze her son's shoulder. "You deserve all the happiness in the world. You must decide what that happiness is though. If it's him, the you need to hold on to it with everything you've got." Aaron tilted his head to rub his cheek against his mother's hand. "I love you, kiddo. Please, just remember you're allowed to be happy."

Monday arrived and Kyle felt both excited and nervous at the same time. Kenny picked him and Stan up to take them both to school. Kyle slid in to the middle and Stan sat next to him to shut the door behind him.

"You two wanna play hooky today?" Kenny asked with a wide, toothy grin.

"No, Kenny," Kyle replied with a small shake of his head. "You shouldn't be skipping class either. You've already got yourself in enough trouble and it's only been a few months."

Kenny laughed proudly. "Yeah, I have," he said and Kyle rolled his eyes.

Kyle opened his locker to toss his bag inside. He quickly grabbed his books and lifted his head slightly. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. He quickly spun around and Aaron's back immediately straightened. His eyebrows furrowed together.

"Did you know I was behind you?" he asked with curiosity.

Kyle grinned. "I'm starting to get used to you, Mr. Carmichael," he replied and turned to push his locker door shut before he started in the direction of the classroom.

"Mr. Carmichael?" Aaron asked as he quickly caught up to Kyle.

Kyle scrunched his nose up slightly. "I like it. It's a nice last name," he said and Aaron quickly stepped in front of him before he turned into the classroom.

"Well, if that's the case then you can have it," Aaron said with a sharp grin before he quickly ducked into the classroom.

Kyle hugged his books tightly to his chest as he tried to gather his senses. The entire day was full of moments like that. Words that made Kyle blush and take a second to catch his breath and gentle touches that lit fires on Kyle's skin. The day flew by too quickly. Kyle barely had time to breathe before he was standing in gym class. They were playing basketball. Kyle's favourite game, despite his build. He made up for his lack of height with lots of enthusiasm. He was on the same team as Stan, Kenny and Aaron were put on the opposite team. Kyle rolled his eyes when Aaron and Kenny high fived and then smacked each other's asses enthusiastically. The happy moment was almost completely wiped away when Kyle realized that also on the other team, Cartman. He made a big scene when the teacher had said they were going to play basketball, but the taller man didn't budge. Cartman was forced to participate or detention.

Kyle wouldn't let the fatass ruin his favourite game, not today. He was in too good of a mood. He stretched his arm above his head as he stood in position on the offense. "Well, Broflovski?" Aaron asked as he stepped up in front of Kyle.

" _Oh no, please no."_

"Let's see what you got, short stuff," Aaron teased his friend.

Kyle smiled wildly. "You have no god damn idea what you're up against, Carmichael," he replied and made Aaron chuckle.

Kyle quickly realized when he was tossed the ball after Stan grabbed the jump that Aaron was a lot faster than he looked. He wasn't faster than Kyle though. The red head dodged through the players to sink the ball into the basket and skipped back to where Aaron was shaking his head with a soft laugh.

"Told you," Kyle sang as he hopped by his friend. Kenny grinned wildly from across the courtyard and Kyle noticed. "Shut up, Kenny!" he shouted.

"Boys! Let's go! There's a game going on here!" the teacher yelled from the sidelines.

The game continued and Kyle was thoroughly enjoying himself. He lost himself in the fun he was having surrounded by his friends. He was tired and sweaty but it didn't matter. He was having too much fun, and then he slammed into the solid body of the last person he wanted to collide with. Cartman. He felt like a brick wall. Kyle's throat constricted. He tried to take a step back but Cartman had a tight grip around his wrist.

"Where ya goin' Kahl?" Cartman drawled.

"Le—Let go of me, Cartman," Kyle ordered with a shaky voice.

"Ya want me ta finish what I started?" Cartman growled in a low voice.

Kyle flinched as Cartman's hand tightened around his wrist. Kenny spun around and noticed the two boys at the corner of the courtyard where no one was paying attention. "Fuck!" Kenny growled and started to run towards Kyle and Cartman.

"Kenny?" Aaron called out curiously and then turned to see where Kenny was running towards.

"Cartman!" Kenny yelled and Cartman quickly let go of him before the dirty blonde-haired boy impacted with him. Kenny pushed Cartman against the wall to hold him by the throat. He quickly turned his head and looked straight at Aaron. "Get Kyle out of here!"

Aaron stopped and looked at the red hair whose hands were tangled into his locks with his eyes squeezed shut. He was hunched over, his shoulders shaking violently. _"Yer nothin'!"_ Kyle griped his hair tightly in his fingers when he felt a strong arm wrap around his waist from behind. His eyes opened wide as he was spun around and then the arm stayed around his waist as they quickly shuffled out of the gymnasium, leaving the loud quarreling behind them between all the classmates.

"Breathe, Kyle," Aaron whispered and let the gym door slam shut behind them. "Please, just try to breathe."

" _No, I don't want you to see me like this,"_ Kyle thought to himself but couldn't wrap his mouth around the words as Aaron continued to lead him down the hall.

" _C'mon, less play a game, Kahl."_

Kyle let his hands leave his hair to shove Aaron away. "Don't touch me!" he yelled and panted heavily as he stared at Aaron's stoic expression. Kyle started to shake again. "I—I don't—I didn't—," he stuttered.

"Where do you want to go?" Aaron asked. Kyle looked at him with wide, confused eyes. "Where do you want to go? Anywhere that you want."

Kyle made a small noise before he sighed. He was still shaking. "St—Stark's Pond," he answered in a low voice.

Aaron nodded. "Alright, let's go," he said as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his shorts and turned away to take a few steps down the hall.

"But—!" Kyle yelled. Aaron stopped to turn his head to look over his shoulder. "What about class?"

"You matter more than class right now, Kyle. I need to make sure you're alright first," Aaron said and Kyle shivered. "Now come on."

Aaron turned back to keep walking. Fast footsteps raced towards him and he felt a soft tug on the back of his shirt. He stopped to turn his head around. Kyle was clutched to the back of his shirt with his head lowered. Aaron didn't say anything. He smiled sadly and continued to walk outside the school. Aaron led the way to his car and opened the passenger side door to let Kyle quickly sit down. The drive to Stark's pond was quiet. Kyle was shaking still and fighting back the demons that invaded his mind. His temples burned. He lifted hand to head to rub at the flesh before he started to thread his fingers through his hair but his hand was quickly ripped away. Aaron's hand held on tightly to his, their fingers lacing together.

"Don't do that. Please," Aaron begged with a flat tone.

Kyle frowned. There was something in the other's boy's voice that made him frown. Aaron slowed his car to move through the narrow path towards Stark's Pond to park next to the beach. The car's engine ceased its rumbling and Aaron sat back in his seat. He had let go of Kyle's hand some time before and kept both on the steering wheel as he let his fingers tap against it. The heavy tension in the cab was back. Kyle hadn't felt it in so long he wasn't sure about it at first.

"Aaron—," Kyle started to say with a shake in his voice.

"I need—," Aaron interrupted and paused with a heavy sigh as he lowered his head. "I need to ask you, but I'm scared it will hurt you. I know you'll force yourself to tell me if I asked."

Kyle turned his head back to stare at his lap. He let out a shaky breath. "I—I want to tell you. It hurts, but I want to tell you."

"Don't—," Aaron started to snap.

"I'll tell you, but I need you to do something," Kyle said quickly. Aaron's eyebrows furrowed together curiously. "Can you—um—sit in the back?"

Aaron had to hold back the small chuckle. He nodded and Kyle listened as the driver's door creaked open, slammed shut, then the back door opened and closed. Aaron sat in the middle of the bench seat and waited. Kyle breathed through the heavy rock in his chest. He was struggling to push aside the dark thoughts to get words from his throat.

"There was a party last year at Token's house. It was at the end of the school year. I went with Stan, and Kenny—," Kyle said and paused to swallowed the lump in his throat. "—and Cartman. We were all friends at the time. We knew Cartman was a handful. We had put up with his shit for years but something that night snapped in him. He drank a lot. I found him holding up the counter in the kitchen. He looked bad so I helped him up the stairs to a room to lay down. What I didn't realize was that he wasn't as drunk as I thought and I definitely didn't notice the knife he carried." Aaron shifted uncomfortably behind Kyle and he had to shut his eyes. "Everything happened so fast, but I was suddenly pinned down on the bed. The knife to my throat."

" _C'mon, let's play a game, Kahl. It's called, how long can the Jew go 'fore he screams?"_

" _Get the fuck off me, Cartman! This isn't funny!"_

" _Awe, is a lil funny seein' you squirm. It's so…invitin'."_

" _Stop, please."_

 _Cartman dragged the flat side of the knife down Kyle's torso to hook it under his shirt at the bottom. The knife's blade ripped the fabric with ease to expose Kyle's creamy skin underneath. "Yer gonna enjoy this," Cartman said breathily. He pressed the sharp side of the knife against Kyle's skin and pressed until he broke skin. Kyle whimpered between pinched lips. His eyes were squeezed shut to keep the tears back as the knife was dragged down his chest. "I wantcha ta member somethin' Kahl. I wantcha ta member me forever," Cartman growled. "Yer no one. Yer never gonna be loved. Yer a filthy Jew. Yer meant ta be dirtied."_

 _Kyle whimpered again when Cartman's hand pressed to his stomach and moved roughly under his pants to wrap his fingers tightly around Kyle's dick. The unwanted touch made Kyle cry and thrash. He wanted out. He wanted to run away._

" _Yer no one without me, Kahl," Cartman whispered into Kyle's ear._

 _The door suddenly opened and Kenny and Stan stumbled inside. "There you guys…are," Stan said before he and Kenny noticed what was happening._

"They saw the knife and freaked. Kenny had Cartman against the wall with his hand to his throat and Stan grabbed me. It took three of the guys to pull Kenny away from Cartman before he killed the bastard," Kyle explained and tightened his fingers on his knees. "I made everyone promise to keep quiet about that happened. I didn't want people to know. I didn't want them to stare and judge and point fingers. Stan and Kenny hated it. They both wanted me to tell someone and get Cartman in trouble, but I couldn't. So, I made a deal with them that if it got to the point that I couldn't handle it on my own anymore, I'd tell someone," Kyle said and scoffed as he slowly shook his head. "I've tried so hard to hold it all back, but I can't help it sometimes. His words are like knives. I can't get them out now they're there."

Arms suddenly wrapped around Kyle from behind his seat. Aaron pressed his forehead against the head rest and sighed. Kyle tilted his head forward to press his cheek to Aaron's top arm.

"I'm no one. I'm never gonna be loved," Kyle said and couldn't help the tears that fell from his eyes.

Aaron moved. He shifted to sit on the centre console facing the back of the car. The added height made him lean forward. His hand grabbed Kyle's seat and he was almost touching the red head's forehead with his own. "Stop," Aaron said breathlessly as his free hand gently touched Aaron's cheek to rub his thumb along the soft skin. "You are everything, Kyle. And I—," Aaron stopped himself with a soft exhale.

Kyle shuttered as the boy's warm breath moved over his face. The unspoken words were lingering in the cramped space of the car. Kyle lifted his shaky hands to grab Aaron by the front of his shirt and pulled him down. Aaron's hand on Kyle's cheek moved around to the back of his head as lips touched. A soft, caring kiss. New and exciting and purely experimental. The two boys were rigid but sparks flared at the connection. Aaron pulled away first as they both sighed.

"Kyle," Aaron whispered against the smaller boy's lips through the small space between them. "You had me bewitched from the moment I first saw you. You are not no one. You are amazing in every single way."

"Aaron," Kyle sighed as the other's finger stroked gentle circles against the back of his neck.

"I like you, Kyle. And if I must spend every day of the rest of my life trying to convince you just how amazing you are, I'll do that," Aaron explained. "I—."

Aaron stopped when Kyle's lips pressed against his again. It was different than the first kiss. It was no longer experimental, it was desperate and needy. Kyle's arms moved to wrap around Aaron's neck to pull him closer. The angling was awkward but neither of them cared. The kiss was warm and their lips moved to create friction and want. Kyle didn't want it to stop.

" _You are everything, Kyle."_

And he believed it. He believed every single sweet, powerful word.

* * *

 **Things are about to get steamy! :D**

 **Stick around for the next chapter. You know you wanna. ;)**


	6. Chapter Six: I'm Yours

**I don't sleep. Instead, I stay awake writing sexy scenes.**

* * *

 **Chapter Six**

Kyle sighed loudly as he pressed his forehead to Aaron's. The new position was far more comfortable in the back seat where Kyle sat on Aaron's lap, his knees on either side of the taller boy's hips. Aaron was breathing heavily, his hands moving carefully from Kyle's thighs to travel up his back. The touch made Kyle arch forward to press their chests together. Aaron smiled and dug his fingers gently into Kyle's back. Their gym shorts were thin and left nothing to the imagination if they would get any closer. Kyle blushed at the thought. He was getting hard, he could feel it grow with each touch that lit his skin on fire.

"Are you okay?" Aaron asked as he removed a hand from Kyle's back to gently brush some strands of red hair away. "Should we go back to the school?"

Kyle shook his head frantically. "No, I don't want to go back," he said and kneaded at his bottom lip with his teeth. Aaron waited with his head slightly tilted and wide eyes staring at Kyle. His hands were both placed at the smaller boy's back again and his fingertips were rubbing small circles.

"What do you want, Kyle?" Aaron whispered, pressing the words that were swirling in the red head's mind.

"I—," Kyle stopped himself. His hands were placed firmly on Aaron's shoulders and for some reason he was shaking. "Can we go to your place?"

Aaron's face didn't shift but he blinked noticeably. "My mom's not going to be home. She's working the graveyard shift today," he said and Kyle wasn't sure if he was telling him or telling himself that detail. "Is—Is that okay?"

It was a strange question. They had hung out at Aaron's house without his mom multiple times before. Something was different now though. The dynamic had shifted from their first kiss. Kyle nodded with a wide smile. Aaron was being such a gentleman. How corny. It made Kyle far too happy.

The boys shifted back to their seats so Aaron could back the car out of the park. When they were cruising down the road and Aaron no longer needed to shift, the taller boy grabbed the smaller hand to thread their fingers together. Kyle felt every bit of anxiety he had wash away. Aaron pulled into his empty driveway and shut off the car. He was out first and Kyle had to take a second to catch his breath. He finally slid out of the car and followed Aaron up to the front door. Aaron opened it to let Kyle inside first and then followed him. He shut the door and turned to see Kyle shivering. It wasn't a nervous shiver, it was a cold shiver.

Aaron chuckled. "Come on, I have some clothes you can wear that'll be warmer than those," he explained and kicked his shoes off to disappear into his room.

Kyle carefully took his shoes off and followed. In all the times he had been to Aaron's, he had never once stepped foot into his room. He saw parts of it from outside and the reflections in the full-length mirror, but he never saw the whole thing until then. It was almost exactly how Kyle had imagined it. Clean with a few loose articles of clothing draped here and there. Baseball equipment sat in the corner. On top of the long dresser that Aaron rummaged through were photos and a fireman's helmet hung on the wall with a framed medal next to it. Kyle drifted over beside Aaron to carefully reach up and touch his fingers to the glass of the frame. Aaron stopped shuffling through the dresser drawer to look up at Kyle's hand.

"It's a medal of bravery," Aaron said and Kyle read the small letter engraved into the metal. "They gave it to me at his funeral. He earned it when he died," he said and let out a soft chuckle as he shook his head. "It's weird. They gave him a medal for being brave but he died being brave. They gave a medal to a dead man."

Kyle lowered his head as he turned to look at the boy next to him who was staring down at the clothes he held tightly in his hands. There was a quick twitch of pain that crossed over the brunet's face and Kyle saw it. The red head reached out to grab Aaron's wrist to slowly turn him. The brunet watched carefully as Kyle took the clothes from him to toss them onto the bed and then stepped into his space. Hands moved up to press against Aaron's chest and then glided to press to his neck.

Kyle stood on his toes but Aaron still had to duck down slightly to meet him. Their lips pressed together and Aaron was surprised when Kyle immediately took over. Heat immediately blazed between the two as lips moved and then Aaron felt a tongue move over his lips. The chill that ran up his spine made him shiver. Kyle felt it and grinned. Aaron's tongue darted out to meet Kyle's and sparks through. Hands were moving up Kyle's sides and along Aaron's chest. Small trails of flames left behind in their finger's wakes. Kyle grabbed Aaron's shirt in his fingers and started to pull him forward. Aaron broke the kiss to open his eyes and follow the guiding movement. Kyle walked backwards until the back of his knees touched the side of Aaron's bed. Aaron quickly grabbed Kyle's arms.

"Kyle, I—," Aaron started to stammer.

"Don't worry," Kyle said with a bright smile as he carefully sat down on the bed. His hands had let go of Aaron's shirt to glide along his arms to grab his hands. "I'll tell you when to stop. I'll tell you when it's too much, but I'm not going to break."

Aaron exhaled with a smile. "I might," he replied.

"Then you tell me when to stop," Kyle said as he shifted their hands to thread their fingers together. "You can say it right now. Just say stop."

Kyle was on his back. Aaron loomed over him to pin the red head's hand above his head, their fingers still laced together. Aaron's free hand moved to the back of Kyle's head as Kyle reached up to put his small hand on the side of Aaron's neck.

"Not yet," Aaron sighed and then leaned down to kiss Kyle again.

Need. Desperation. Heat. Tongues dove into opposite mouths to touch every bump and taste every inch. Kyle's body was hot with anticipation. He wanted to be touched. He needed to be touched. He moved his hand from Aaron's neck to ghost it down over the brunet's torso to grab the bottom of his shirt. Aaron let go of Kyle's hand to help him with his shirt. Kyle's breath caught in his throat. He had seen Aaron shirtless multiple times but it was different now. The skin looked soft and inviting. The small muscles under rippled as Aaron moved. He was flawless, beautiful.

"You're staring," Aaron said with a lifted eyebrow to give Kyle a quizzical look.

Kyle's cheeks reddened. Aaron laughed and grabbed Kyle's hand to press it to his face. He gently kissed the boy's palm. Kyle sighed as he let his head sink back further into the mattress. The slightly cracked lips against his soft palm made his spine shiver. Then the lips left and his palm was pressed against soft skin. Aaron's chest. Aaron's hands moved along Kyle's chest and stopped to gently pinch the bottom of his shirt with his fingertips.

"Can I?" Aaron asked.

Kyle pushed himself to sit up and reached his hands far above his head as he smiled. Aaron laughed and pulled Kyle's shirt over his head easily. Chilled air brushed over Kyle's now exposed skin and when he looked up, Aaron was staring with a soft, saddened expression at the long scar along his chest. The stare made Kyle want to curl in on himself. Aaron touched his fingertips to the top of the scar and slowly moved them along the bump of healed skin. Kyle opened his mouth to say something but Aaron's lips pressed over the top of the scar and he threw his head back with a loud inhale. His hand found its way into Aaron's hair as he laid back down on the mattress. Aaron continued to kiss along the scar but didn't stop when he reached the end. He placed small butterfly kisses along Kyle's stomach and to meet the skin just above the smaller boy's shorts. Kyle quickly snapped out of the state of euphoria he was in. His heart thumped rapidly in his chest and he was panicking.

"St—Stop," he managed to croak out in a shaky voice.

Aaron's hands immediately disconnected and he sat up. He scrambled off and took a step back. His hand quickly pushed through his hair. "I—I'm sorry, I didn't—I shouldn't have—," Aaron stammered worriedly.

Kyle quickly stood up and his body pressed against Aaron's. Kyle's arms wrapped around Aaron's waist in a tight hug as his face pressed to the taller boy's bare chest. Aaron hesitated before he pushed a hand into Kyle's hair and let his other hand wrap around his shoulders.

"You didn't do anything wrong. I'm just—," Kyle began to explain but stopped himself to exhale shakily. Aaron started to laugh. Kyle's eyebrows furrowed together and he lifted his head to look up at the taller boy. Aaron continued to laugh. It was loud and made his eyes squeeze shut. "Why are you laughing?"

Aaron shook his head frantically as he slowed his laughter down. "I—I'm sorry I just—when you said stop, it scared the shit out of me. It felt like I was being pulled out of a deep sleep or something."

"And that's funny?" Kyle asked.

Aaron pressed his forehead to Kyle's and let out a sharp sigh. "I'm sorry," he said with a lowered tone.

Kyle gave Aaron's back a small pinch which made the taller boy yelp as he arched his back slightly. "Stop apologizing," Kyle said and Aaron smiled with a small chuckle. "Can we just lay down for a bit? I feel tired."

Aaron nodded. "Yeah, but first let's change," he said and reached over to pick up the clothes Kyle had tossed onto the bed. Kyle changed into the baggy jogging pants and t-shirt that was a size too big for him with an artistic picture of an elephant on it. Aaron changed in front of the full-length mirror and had to stop when his attention was caught by the reflection of Kyle in nothing but his boxers across the room. Aaron swallowed the nervous lump in his throat.

" _He's gorgeous,"_ he thought to himself and shook his head. _"Stop staring. Don't be a pervert, Carmichael."_

Kyle was underneath Aaron's large comforter and plaid quilt first. Aaron walked over to the side of the bed in his jeans and long sleeve shirt. He slid under the blankets and Kyle immediately shifted to press his face to Aaron's chest. Aaron slid one arm under the pillows and let the other arm wrap around Kyle to pull him close. Silence loomed in the room. It was calming. The two boys were tangled in each other, listening to each other's soft breaths and taking in each other's warmth. Then, Kyle started to chuckle softly. Aaron opened his eyes to look down to Kyle who was burying his face in the other's chest.

"Kyle?" Aaron said curiously.

"Sorry, I'm just remembering the last time we were in a bed together," Kyle said and then lifted his head to crane his neck to look at Aaron. "I woke up with you wrapped around me from behind moaning in your sleep."

Aaron jerked away slightly. His eyes were wide with horror. "What? Really? Why didn't you say anything?" he asked in shock.

Kyle chuckled and pulled Aaron against him again. "It's fine. You were asleep. You didn't even know what you were doing. Plus, it felt nice. I liked it, but I didn't know you felt same until the wake thanks to your mom."

Aaron quickly propped himself up on his elbow. His eyes were impossibly wider. "What? She told you?" he snapped.

Kyle rolled onto his back and laughed. "Not on purpose. I was eavesdropping on her and Deborah," he explained and Aaron's face twisted into playful disappointment. Kyle grinned. "What? I couldn't help it. She was talking about how I make you happy and how you liked me and—."

"Stop!" Aaron yelled as he quickly clamped a hand over Kyle's mouth. The red head's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. "I told my mom a lot of embarrassing things so whatever it is that you heard, I don't want to know. I want you to hear me say them to you, not just repeat what I know she's said to you."

Kyle's cheeks burned. He was happy. He smiled under Aaron's hand and threw his arms around the brunet to pull him down against him. Aaron let out a loud grunt as he fell onto Kyle and chuckled loudly. "You make me happy too, and I like you too," Kyle whispered and Aaron snaked his arms around the smaller boy to roll them over so he was lying on the taller boy's chest.

Kyle wasn't sure when he fell asleep to the sound of Aaron's steady heartbeat and he didn't care until he woke to the sound of heavy banging. He moaned as the arms around him tightened. The banging was coming from outside the room on the main door.

"Aaron! Come on man, don't make me break and enter!" Kenny's muffled voice yelled through the door. "Kyle's not home and I know you're in there." Kyle's eyes fluttered open as the front door opened and shut. "Check downstairs, Stan."

Kyle managed to slide out of the arms wrapped around him to sit up. He rubbed his eyes with his knuckles and yawned. Footsteps thumped down the stairs on the other side of the wall and then there was a low snicker. Kyle dropped his hands and looked up to see Kenny standing in the doorway of the room.

"Well, what were you two up to?" he asked with a mischievous grin.

Kyle's eyebrows furrowed together. He turned his head to look at Aaron who was still fast sleep. Kyle's eyes snapped open and he quickly flew off the bed. "Ken, it—it's not wha—what it looks like. I swear!" Kyle stuttered as he frantically waved his hands in the air.

Kenny chuckled. "Relax Kyle, it's not like I totally called this," he said and slid Aaron's bag off his shoulder to toss it across the room. It landed on Aaron with a heavy thud that woke him straight out of his sleep. He quickly sat up and looked around frantically.

"What the fuck? What—?" he yelled and stopped when he spotted Kenny in the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Don't worry Stan, I found them!" Kenny leaned out of the room to yell down the stairs. "I told you to get him out of the gymnasium, not take advantage of his poor fragile state," Kenny said to Aaron with a lifted eyebrow.

"Kenny!" Kyle shouted in a low growl.

"I'm kidding. There's nothing fragile about you, dear little Kyle," Kenny said and leaned against the doorframe.

"Oh my god!" Stan suddenly screamed from downstairs and everyone's faced contorted into confusion and worry. "Look at the size of this dog! Kenny! Come see this fucking dog!" The three boys simultaneous chuckled as they rolled their eyes or shook their heads. "Kenny!"

"Coming Stanley," Kenny said as he stepped out of the room to head downstairs.

Kyle moved towards the door but stopped when Aaron quickly shuffled off the bed. "Wait," he said as he quickly rushed over to put a hand on Kyle's waist as the other touched his cheek. "I have to ask what this is. What we are, because I can't handle anything that's not real right now, even if it means not having you at all. I want you but—."

"You have me," Kyle interrupted as his hands went up to cup Aaron's cheeks. "This is real. You have me. I just—Let's go slow to start. I've never done anything like this before and I don't know how everyone is going to react to it."

Aaron smiled and nodded in understanding. They kissed quickly to pull away when they heard Kenny suddenly yell, "Holy fuck, is that a horse?" and Stan squealed loudly in excitement.

"I should go down there and make sure they don't try to ride Winston," Aaron said and turned to leave but Kyle grabbed tightly onto his hand to pull him back for one more kiss that Aaron smiled against.

"I'm never going to get tired of that," Kyle whispered against Aaron's lips as the taller boy ran his fingers through Kyle's messy hair.

Kenny and Stan were pleasantly surprised by Kyle's happiness that they thought against asking if he was alright because it was obvious he was. What was more obvious, at least to Kenny, was the connection between Kyle and Aaron. Their constant stares and frequent touching was something hard to miss if you were looking for it. Stan was too busy rolling around on the floor with Winston to notice. And when Pinecone was suddenly revealed from his cage, the raven-haired boy was completely gone.

The next day, Aaron picked up Kyle and Stan to take them to school. Kyle sat in the front seat and spent the entire car ride thinking about Aaron's hands. They were big and warm and he wanted them all over him. In his hair, over his chest, down his back. Anywhere he could be touched, he wanted to be touched by those hands, but there was also something else nagging in the back of his mind. That familiar voice he tried so desperately to push out for months. The voice that made him say uncle at Aaron's before they got too far.

"Kenny," Kyle called out as he jogged ahead of Aaron and Stan once he was out of the Chevy. Kenny was leaning against his truck with a cigarette between his lips. He wasn't a heavy smoker, just one here and there when he was bored or stressed. He took a drag of the cigarette and blew the smoke out the corner of his mouth. "We didn't get a chance to talk yesterday," Kyle said in a low, quieted voice. "About—."

"You and Aaron?" Kenny finished for the red head with a quirky grin.

Kyle blushed and nodded. "Can—Can you keep it a secret? Just until we're ready to tell people?" he asked.

"Even from Stan?" Kenny asked as he flicked his cigarette.

"Just for now," Kyle begged.

Kenny nodded. "He does know about your feelings for Aaron, but he doesn't know you two are together. He might catch on though. He's oblivious but not stupid. He can put one and one together," he explained and took another inhale of his cigarette. "All I'm saying is, don't keep a secret for too long. The sooner you come out with the truth, the better the chance you have to squash any rumours that may come out."

Kyle nodded. "Kenny! Give me one of those," Stan said as he stepped around Kyle to take one from the small pack Kenny held out to him. "What were you two talking about?"

"Nothing in particular. Here," Kenny said and held up his lighter for Stan.

Class was painful for Kyle. He spent the entire time thinking about the boy sitting near him. Lingering stares and brushing touches made his heart beat faster in his chest. At lunch, they sat so close that their knees touched out of everyone's view. Kyle reached down to scratch at a spot above his knee cap and when he brought his hand up he dragged his fingers over the other boy's thigh. Aaron was talking to Stan across the table. His lips turned up higher into a bigger smile halfway through his sentence and Kyle knew he had the boy on edge.

Third period, Spanish, the class was gathered in the library. It was two levels with lots of sections of bookcases and tables. Kyle and Stan sat at a table with Clyde and Token. They weren't close but they were told to get into a group of four and there wasn't any other option that Kyle liked.

"Clyde and I are gonna get on a computer. Are you guys okay with finding some books?" Token asked as he stood.

Kyle nodded in agreement. Token and Clyde grabbed their notebooks to head downstairs to the computers. Aaron stood next and gave Kyle's shoulder a small tap. "Come on," he said.

Kyle followed Aaron down rows of bookcases and wondered where the taller boy was heading towards. They had passed the section they needed and were heading into the genres that had nothing to do with what they needed to research. Aaron turned the corner into the last row and Kyle followed where he was immediately grabbed and pinned against the shelves. Aaron quickly tilted to look around the corner to make sure no one was coming before he stepped into Kyle's space to kiss him.

"That was a dirty thing you did at lunch, Kyle Broflovski," Aaron growled against Kyle's grinning lips.

"I had a feeling you enjoyed that," he replied.

Aaron smiled and then leaned forward but his lips didn't find Kyle's, they found the soft skin on the red head's neck. Kyle inhaled sharply and let his head tilt back to clunk against the shelf. Aaron's hand gripped the wooden shelf as he placed soft kisses along the pale skin of Kyle's neck. The brunet would lightly grab the skin between his teeth occasionally to pull small moans from Kyle's throat. When Aaron pulled away, Kyle's face was bright red and he was breathing heavily. Aaron grinned proudly at his work.

"This is your punishment, Mr. Broflovski," Aaron whispered next to Kyle's ear before he stepped aside to leave the isle.

Kyle let out a shaky breath and lifted his hands to press them to his hot face. At this rate, he wasn't going to last. He kept his distance to Aaron for the rest of the day and it only amused the brunet more. At the end of the day, Aaron drove Kyle and Stan home. Stan crawled out first and before Kyle could leave, Aaron grabbed his hand to gently stroke his thumb over the soft skin.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Aaron said and Kyle nodded.

Kyle barely slept that night. Memories of soft lips pressed to his neck were burned into his mind. The phantom touches made him shiver as he shifted positions uncomfortably. He fought to keep his eyes open as he stood on the sidewalk. "Dude, long night?" Stan asked as he stepped up beside his friend who was yawning.

"Couldn't sleep," Kyle answered and rubbed his eye.

Stan smacked Kyle's back to make the red head grunt. The battered old pickup truck flew around the corner and Kyle felt a small twinge of disappointment. He knew Aaron couldn't always be the one to pick them up, it was too suspicious, but that didn't make it any less hard. Kyle sat in the middle with the two boys on either side of him and leaned his head against Stan's shoulder to close his eyes. He just wanted a few minutes of peaceful sleep before he had to force himself through another day of school.

" _Kyle,"_ Aaron's soft voice echoed in Kyle's tired mind. _"I want you."_

"Hey, wake up," Stan said as he moved his shoulder to jostle Kyle from his sleep. Kyle sat up with a low groan and rubbed his eyes. The truck was stopped in a parking spot facing the school. Kenny was already climbing out as Stan gently rubbed Kyle's shoulder. "Are you alright? It's not like you to not sleep."

" _Oh, I'm fine. Just stayed up all night being horny and thinking about being fucked by—."_

"I'm good," Kyle lifted his head, ceasing his own thoughts. "I promise, I'm fine," he assured his friend with a wide smile.

Stan exhaled and smiled back. Kyle spotted Aaron's car in the parking lot but didn't see him until he stepped into his Algebra classroom. Aaron was sitting in his spot with his glasses on his face and his book open in front of him. He didn't look up until Kyle was crossing in front of the desk to walk around to his spot. The brunet grinned and let his gold eyes fall back on his book.

"You look exhausted," Aaron said and then leaned over slightly towards Kyle. "It's kind of cute."

"It's your fault. I was up all night…thinking," Kyle explained.

Aaron moved his glasses down his nose a bit so he could look over them at Kyle with an arched eyebrow. The red head turned his head and his breath hitched in his throat. The look caught him off guard. It was unbelievably attractive. Kyle turned his head back and Aaron let out a small chuckle as he pushed his glasses back up and returned to his book.

" _Oh shit…"_

Kyle went home again after school. He wanted badly to hang out with his friends but his mother had guilt tripped him about never being home lately. It was true. He was always either at Stan's or Aaron's. He picked his way through dinner, avoiding answering any long-winded questions. He was too tired to deal with too many questions so he left the majority of them to Ike. After dinner, Kyle went back to his room to do his homework. His head was too tired and distracted to focus. He dazed out at one time and came back to see he had drawn Aaron's name all over the page. A knock on the door startled him. He quickly ripped the piece of paper out of his notebook and spun around.

"Bubbie?" Sheila said as she cracked open the door.

"Yeah ma?" Kyle replied and the door completely swung open.

"Your father and I are going out. We won't be back until late. Watch over your brother, okay?" she said and Kyle nodded. She walked over to gently kiss her son on the forehead before she walked out, closing the door behind her.

Kyle listened to the soft voices of his mother speaking to Ike and then the front door closing. Their car quietly pulled out of the driveway and Kyle leaned back in his chair as he stretched his arms over his head. He sat back forward to look down at his open textbook but the attempt to do his homework was long gone. His chair rattled as it rolled backwards when he stood and made a dash for his door. He quickly rushed down the stairs to the front door where he grabbed his coat and slid on his boots.

"Where are you going?" Ike asked from his spot on the couch.

Kyle grabbed his keys to shove them into his pocket. "Ike, can you promise me that you won't burn down the house while I'm gone?" he asked.

"If you tell me where you're going," Ike replied as he turned his head to grin at his big brother.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "I'm going to a friend's house for a bit. I'll be back before mom and dad get home, but I need you to promise me you'll be good and you won't tell them I left."

Ike shuffled so he knelt on the couch with his elbows on the back. His grin grew wider. "What do I get in return?" he asked.

"What do you want, you little con artist?" Kyle asked in a low voice.

"Do my homework for a month," Ike replied.

"I will help you with your homework for a month and I'll do your chores for two weeks," Kyle retaliated.

Ike nodded and turned back in his seat to continue watching the television. "Deal," he said.

Kyle quickly swung open the door and slammed it shut behind him before he bounced off the front porch. The setting sun lit up the sky with colours of orange and red making it look like it was on fire. Kyle ran down the street, his breaths in heavy pants. He couldn't walk, it was take too painfully long. He didn't stop until he reached the familiar front door of the bungalow with the muscle car parked in the driveway. He huffed heavily as he pounded on the door and waited. Kyle guessed Aaron was downstairs with how long it took him to get to the door. He gently opened the door, his glasses perched on his nose with wide gold eyes magnified behind them.

"Kyle?" he asked with a worried tone. "What's wrong?"

"Is your mom home?" Kyle asked breathlessly. His hair was a mess and he was sweating along his forehead.

"Is someone hurt?" Aaron pressed, his worry growing in his voice.

"Is your mom home?" Kyle repeated himself.

Aaron shook his head. "No, she's at work, why—?"

"Good," Kyle said as he stepped forward and pushed Aaron back inside the house.

Kyle kicked the door closed as he wrapped thin arms around the taller boy's neck to crash their lips together. A tongue immediately darted out to brush over Aaron's lips. The taller boy moaned and gladly opened his mouth to allow Kyle inside. The fight for dominance began as Kyle peeled his coat off his shoulders to toss it to the side. Aaron's hands found Kyle's hips to hold them in a bruising grip. Kyle pulled his tongue out of Aaron's mouth and gently pinched the brunet's bottom lip between his teeth. Aaron gasped lightly and pulled away.

"Kyle, what is—?" Aaron started to ask in small pants.

Kyle kicked off his boots and reached up to grab Aaron's glasses from his face to set them on the small table beside him. "I don't want to feel his touch anymore. I can't let him win," Kyle said and grabbed the zipper of Aaron's sweater to pull it down. "I want you. I want to feel your touch all over me. Only you."

Aaron quickly caught Kyle's wrists to stop him. "Wait, hold on. I need to make sure you're serious right now. That you want this, not that you're trying to bury down some deep seeded issue."

Suddenly, Liz's voice echoed through Kyle's mind. _"Aaron can't take anymore heartache."_

"I want you, Aaron," Kyle said in a soft voice. "I'm not going to break. I'm not going to run. I want all of you, and no one else."

Aaron let go of Kyle's wrists to grab his arms. He let out a soft yelp as he was slammed against the door and desperate lips slammed against his in a bruising kiss. Aaron pressed against Kyle and the friction caused all his blood to rush to his lap. He groaned into the kiss and then lips disconnected. Aaron grabbed Kyle to pull his away from the door and spun him around. Lips kissed and gently sucked at the skin on Kyle's neck. Kyle's head fell back against the taller boy's shoulder as he was walked towards the bedroom. Hands held firmly onto Kyle's hips to lead him to the end of the bed.

Aaron spun Kyle back around to face him and they kissed again. It was short as Aaron found the bottom of the red head's shirt. The fabric was lifted over Kyle's head with ease and lips found the healed skin. Kyle remembered the pain he felt as the blade cut through his flesh and all of it was being washed away by the warmth and love of Aaron's lips. Kyle fumbled to grab Aaron's sweater and the taller boy immediately backed away from his loving kisses. Kyle tossed the sweater to the side and then grabbed the bottom of Aaron's shirt. He wasn't as smooth with removing the article of clothing as Aaron was. The awkward removal made Aaron chuckle. The sound washed away any tension that was left in the air. Kyle felt like liquid when he heard that sound. It distracted him and he was only brought back when Aaron gave him a small shove backwards. He fell back onto the bed with a small grunt and Aaron was immediately over him.

The bed shifted with Aaron's weight as he leaned down to kiss the scar on Kyle's chest again before moving his attention to the small pink nipple next to it. The warm, wet feeling over the sensitive nub made Kyle's back arch as his hands found their way into soft brown locks. The pressure in the lower part of his torso was growing. Butterflies fluttered in his stomach with every needy touch. This was the opposite to what he felt during the party with Cartman. That was terrifying and everything he didn't want, but this was everything he did want. Attentive care. Kind devotion. Want. Need. Warmth. Electricity.

"Kyle," Aaron said breathlessly as he shifted to hover over the red head so emerald eyes met with bright gold. "I can stop. If you want me to, I'll do it. I'll anything for you."

Kyle felt breathless at that. He glided his hands over the other boy's back to place them on his ass and pulled him down. Their crotches pressed together and both boys let out a low moan in pleasure. "Don't stop," Kyle whispered and wrapped his legs around Aaron's as he rolled his hips. The friction of jeans sent waves of pleasure between the two boys but it wasn't enough. They both wanted, no, needed more. "Don't leave me."

Aaron ran his fingers through Kyle's hair and pressed their foreheads together. "Anything you want, babe. I'm yours."

* * *

 **Yeah, you guys know what's next! I'll be done the next chapter ASAP. :D**


	7. Chapter Seven: Goodbye Demons

**A longer chapter but it's got all the good, juicy bits in it.**

 **Bon appetit, mon amies! :D**

* * *

 **Chapter Seven**

Kyle always wondered about the whole socks versus no socks debate. He thought it would be weird to keep your socks on during such an intimate act. He was glad Aaron agreed by swiftly removing the black with yellow diamond socks from his feet before taking his sweet time pulling off his jeans. Kyle shivered. He was down to nothing but his light grey boxers. He was exposed and under the intense watch of piercing gold eyes. Aaron let out a shaky sigh. He lifted his hand to run his fingers through his hair and Kyle was growing increasingly worried.

"What—What's wrong?" Kyle asked.

Aaron shook his head frantically as he leaned forward to place soft kisses to Kyle's lips and cheeks. "Nothing is wrong," he said and shifted to Kyle's neck. "You're beautiful, Kyle Broflovski."

Kyle blushed as the boy continued to place soft kisses along his neck and travelled down. The trail moved over his chest, his stomach, and stopped just above the waistband of his boxers. Kyle had to swallow the bundle of nerves that formed in his throat.

" _Yer no one."_

" _Shut up. You're wrong. I'm his. He's mine. We are everything."_

Aaron looked up through his eyelashes to watch Kyle's face. The red head had his eyes closed and he was working through something but there was no hesitation. Aaron placed his hands on Kyle's knees and started to move them up his thighs. The touch ripped a noise from Kyle's throat that Aaron hadn't heard yet. Pure ecstasy. Aaron's hands moved up to hook his fingers around the waistband of Kyle's boxers. He waited a moment for any sign of hesitation but was instead met with a writhing mess of need. Kyle shifted his hips slightly. His bottom lip was clenched between his teeth as he moaned low. That was everything Aaron needed. There was no stopping. Kyle was true. He wanted this. He needed this.

Kyle gasped lightly as he was completely exposed to the air. He had never been this naked in front of, well, anyone since he was too young to remember. A hand pressed to his stomach and he lifted his head slightly but it immediately fell back against the mattress when warmth wrapped around his hard cock. Aaron's mouth took in all of Kyle and the feeling ripped that same ecstasy filled moan from the red head's throat again. Aaron moved, bobbing his head to a slow rhythm as he let his tongue run along the bottom of Kyle's cock. Kyle's hand found it way into Aaron's hair as his other hand grabbed a fist full of the bed sheet above his head.

The sensation of Aaron's warm, wet mouth wrapped around his cock was overwhelming. His thighs quaked and his back arched when Aaron hollowed his cheeks to bob his head a few more times before he released Kyle. The red head moaned sadly from the lack of connection. Aaron shifted off the bed to stand and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Though his body was still shaking, Kyle managed to sit himself up and reached for Aaron's jeans. The taller boy lifted both his hands to push his hair back with his fingers as Kyle worked at the button and zipper. Once open, Kyle grabbed the jeans with Aaron's boxer briefs and pulled them both down. They pooled at Aaron's ankles and the brunet tightened his fingers in his hair when Kyle wrapped nimble fingers around the base of his cock to take the remainder of it in his mouth.

"A—Ah!" Aaron gasped as Kyle mimicked the same movements he had received before.

Aaron kept his hands in his thick hair as Kyle worked him to the brink. He let go only to reach down to press his palm to the side of Kyle's face. The smaller boy leaned back and tilted his head back to look up. His eyes were hooded as his chest heaved slightly out of breath and he stared up with rosy plump lips. The sight made Aaron's dick twitch. He leaned down to kiss the corner of Kyle's mouth where a bit of saliva mixed with Aaron's precum had rested before he fully kissed the red head's lips. Aaron slowly guided Kyle back onto the bed and then pulled away from the kiss.

"Wait here," he whispered and then left the bed.

Kyle did as he was told. He watched as Aaron walked over to his dresser to fumble through the top drawer. The room was dark except for a sliver of light that poured in from the kitchen, the only room in the house that had a light on in. The sliver of light was enough for the two boys to see everything. Kyle drank in the sight as Aaron searched. The broad shape of the boy's shoulders. The slight curve of his spine down to a perfect ass and well toned legs. Aaron had been given the gift of beauty. Kyle, on the hand, was lanky and thin. He had no muscles and his skin was almost sickly pale. He couldn't imagine what the beautiful boy saw in him. He called him beautiful but he knew he was far from it.

"Ah! There you are," Aaron exclaimed and pulled out two items from the drawer. Kyle propped himself up onto his elbows to get a better look. A condom and a bottle of lube. Kyle's eyebrow arched up as Aaron looked at him with wide eyes. "I had these before I knew you, I promise. It was a gag gift from my friends before I left Boulder. Turns out it wasn't much of a gag as preparation."

Kyle laughed. Aaron stepped back to the end of the bed. He set the condom down next to Kyle and popped open the bottle of lube. The smell of strawberries wafted through the room. Kyle watched as Aaron applied the lube to his fingers before he clicked the bottle shut and set it on the bed. Gold eyes connected with emerald. Aaron was silently asking for permission. Once they broke through the next barrier, there was no going back. Kyle knew it. He knew that if he said no they could possibly get through the awkwardness, but if they kept going, that was it. They were bound forever.

Kyle nodded and Aaron leaned forward to guide the smaller boy back to lay down. Aaron kissed Kyle hard and the red head let out a loud whimper as a finger was slowly inserted inside him. The burning sensation made his body shiver. Aaron didn't move until Kyle's scrunched up face relaxed. He slowly pulled his finger out and returned with two. Kyle disconnected the kiss to let out a shaky breath. A third finger was added and the burning sensation was changing. It was dulling to pleasure. Aaron moved his fingers and stretched Kyle as far as his body would allow. Kyle's hand pushed roughly into Aaron's hair and his jaw slacked open as he pressed his forehead to Aaron's.

"Talk to me," Aaron whispered.

"F—Feels…so good," Kyle said and pressed his head back hard into the mattress. He whimpered as Aaron removed his fingers and moved his hands up to press the heels into his eyes. There was the sound of plastic ripping, Aaron holding back a small moan, and the lube bottle clicked open again.

"Kyle?" Aaron said with a worried tone as his fingers carefully wrapped around the red head's wrist. "What's wrong?"

Kyle sniffled loudly and slowly rocked his head back and forth. "I—I don't want to say it. It might hurt t—to much."

"You have to say it," Aaron replied in a low, husky voice. He was trying so hard to hold back.

Aaron gave Kyle's wrist a small tug. Kyle slowly moved his hands away to let them rest against the mattress. "I want you forever, Aaron. I shouldn't ask that because I don't know what's going to happen or where we're going to end up but I can't bear to lose you. I need you."

"You have me," Aaron reassured Kyle with hands pressed to his cheeks. Thumbs gently brushed the tops of the boy's cheeks. "You have me, until the end of time. Anywhere you go, I'll follow you. I'll follow you to the end of the Earth if I have to."

Kyle looped his arms up around Aaron's neck to pull him down to a soft kiss. Aaron kept one hand on Kyle's cheek as he moved his other arm to hook it around the back of Kyle's leg. He pulled the boy's leg up to raise his hips slightly and positioned himself. Kyle let out a shaky, nervous breath. Aaron swallowed hard as he waited for Kyle to nod. The brunet buried himself deep inside the red head. Kyle shouted to the ceiling, a mixture of pain and pleasure. Aaron waited for the boy underneath him to adjust to the foreign feeling of something inside him. It didn't take as long as either had anticipated. Kyle threaded his fingers in Aaron's hair.

"Move," he groaned. Aaron didn't hesitate. He pulled out to immediate slam back into Kyle, earning a pleasured moan. "Faster," Kyle begged and Aaron happily obliged. The room filled with the loud sounds of skin slapping against skin and soft moans and groans from both boys. Kyle tightened his lips together but couldn't hold back the loud shout when Aaron pressed against that bundle of nerves that sent explosions of pleasure fireworks throughout his body. "Ah! Aaron, th—there!"

Aaron focused on that spot and hit it repeatedly. Kyle's shouts grew louder with every press against the bundle of nerves. Aaron straightened his back and reached between their bodies to wrap his long fingers around Kyle's cock. The new added feeling made Kyle's back arch high off the bed. He was close. Aaron could feel it through his tightening walls. The brunet tilted his head forward as he tried to hold himself back long enough for—

"Ah! Aaron, I—!" Kyle shouted and came all over his stomach and Aaron's fingers with violent twitches and spasms. Aaron let go of Kyle's satisfied cock as he continued to thrust into the red head. Kyle grabbed Aaron's wrist and pulled his hand up to his face to run his tongue along the long, nimble fingers to lick off the cum over them. Aaron let out a shaky breath and then moaned loudly when Kyle wrapped his warm mouth around his fingers to suck whatever of his juices were left on the skin. Aaron thrusted hard, slowing each time until he was completely spent.

Both boys were panting heavily. Heat lingered in the bedroom air. Aaron leaned forward to press his forehead against Kyle's heaving chest. "Fuck, that was—," he managed to say between heavy breaths. "Fucking hot."

Kyle laughed. His body was exhausted but he still mewled at the sudden loss of Aaron inside him. The brunet shifted around the room to dispose of his used condom before he walked over to crawl onto the bed. Kyle groaned as Aaron pulled him to sit up and then wrapped his arms around the slender waist to pull him back along the bed. Aaron sat with his back pressed to the pile of pillows against the headboard as Kyle sat against his chest. They pulled Aaron's quilt up over them to ward off the cold from their heated bodies and Aaron played with Kyle's tangled locks. They were both coming down from their highs. Kyle pressed harder into the warmth against his back as Aaron gently kissed the top of his head.

"So, can I ask?" Aaron asked and Kyle hummed lazily. "What made you snap?"

Kyle chuckled and turned so he could press his cheek against Aaron's chest as he listened to his steady heartbeat. "The library," he answered sleepily.

Aaron smiled proudly. "Thought so, but remember, you started it," he replied. Kyle hummed as he nuzzled his cheek against the boy's chest and Aaron tilted his head slightly to see the boy's eyes closed and his breathing was already starting to slow. "Hey, when do you have to go back home?" Aaron asked as he gently tapped Kyle's cheek.

"Parents are out. Won't be back till late. Lots of time to sleep," Kyle muttered tiredly.

Aaron exhaled and shifted to let Kyle lay down with his head pressed to a pillow. Aaron pressed against the red head's back as he continued to play with the soft locks. It didn't take long for Kyle to slip into sleep between the calming strokes of long fingers through his hair and the warmth that radiated through his back. Not shortly after he was asleep, Aaron was following him.

They didn't wake until Kyle's eyes snapped open to the sound of the front door being closed. He took a moment to figure out where the hell he was or what the hell was going on. Aaron's bedroom, that's where he was. As to what was happening—He quickly sat up with a sharp gasp and smacked Aaron on the shoulder.

"Aaron, get up!" Kyle snapped in a low voice. The brunet groaned and tightened his arm around Kyle's waist. The red head growled in frustration. "This is not the time," he snapped and smacked Aaron's shoulder again. "Wake up."

"Aaron, sweetie, I'm home!" Liz called out as she moved towards the kitchen.

Aaron's eyes opened and he quickly sat up. Kyle snorted quietly at how much of a mess his hair was. "Shit, the one time she's actually home on time," Aaron muttered as he quickly scrambled down the bed to snatch up his underwear and jeans.

"What do we do?" Kyle asked with a slight shake in his voice.

Aaron stood at the end of the bed trying to get his jeans on as quickly as possible. "I'm gonna go out and talk to her. You get dressed," he said and quickly crawled across the bed to give Kyle a quick kiss. "Don't worry, it'll be fine."

"Wha—Aaron?" Kyle said but the boy was already stumbling out of the room to close the door behind him.

Aaron let out a sharp sigh. "There you are," Liz said from the archway to the kitchen. "Were you having a nap?"

Aaron turned to face his mother and gave her a wry smile. "Yep," he answered.

Liz's face turned down into a look of frustration and worry. "What did you do?" she asked with a stern voice.

Aaron laughed nervously. "What makes you think I did something?" he asked as he stepped away from his bedroom door.

"You have the same smile you and your father make when you've done something you shouldn't have," Liz explained and crossed her arms over her chest. "So, what did you do? And don't lie to me, Aaron. I know when you're lying."

Aaron exhaled heavily and he ran his fingers through his hair. "Okay. Just promise you won't be too mad."

Kyle fumbled in the dark for his clothes. It was difficult since his eyes hadn't quite adjusted yet and when Aaron closed the door he cut off the only source of light. As he moved he focused in on the pain he had in his lower back but it was immediately soothed at the memory of why. Warm touches and loud shouts of pleasure. It was perfect.

Liz stared at her son. He was rubbing his arm as he looked back at his mother with a sheepish expression. Tension lingered between them. The woman let her eyes linger away from her son to the unfamiliar kicked off boots that sat next to the door and the green coat that hung on the back of the couch. She looked back at her son just before the bedroom door opened and Kyle stumbled out. Aaron snapped his eyes shut. Liz shifted her gaze to the red head whose face immediately turned the same shade as his hair. Kyle tried to force down the lump of nerves in his throat and he watched as Liz sighed…out of relief?

Aaron opened his eyes. "Mom—," he started to say but the woman quickly lifted her hand to silence him.

"Kyle," she spoke in a very flat tone that made Kyle's back straighten. His mother had used a series of tones before but nothing ever came as close to terrifying as Liz's did. "It's late. You should probably head home before your parents start to worry," she explained, keeping the tone in her voice and her stoic expression on her face. Kyle nodded frantically and quickly ran over to his coat before sliding on his boots. Aaron started to turn but Liz snapped her fingers and pointed at him to stop him. Kyle quickly reached for the doorknob on the front door when Liz called out, "Kyle," she said and the red head's body went ridged. "I have Thursday off. I will be making dinner and as long as it's okay with your parents, I want you to come."

Kyle's eyebrows furrowed together and he quickly turned his head to see a wide smile form on Liz's face. "Fuck, mom! Come on!" Aaron yelled and then groaned loudly in frustration. "That's not funny."

"Oh, I think it's hilarious," Liz replied and laughed lightly before turning her attention back to Kyle. "But seriously Kyle, I don't want you getting in trouble so you should head on home. Do you need a ride?"

Kyle quickly shook his head. "No, I live close. I'll be fine," he replied with a small grin.

"Then I'll see you Thursday," Liz said and kept her wide, amused smile on her face.

Kyle ducked out of the house, closed the door behind him, and pressed his back to it with a loud sigh. "That was not cool. I thought you were seriously mad for a minute," Aaron said as he walked around the couch to sit down.

"Well, I'm going to admit, I am a little mad," Liz said as she walked over to sit in the recliner and face her son. "I wouldn't be a very good parent if I wasn't mad about coming home to find my son had banged his classmate under my nose."

"Mom, can you not say banged? Please? I don't want to have to go back to see a therapist," Aaron said as he waved his hand dismissively.

"Is fucked better?" Liz asked.

Aaron leaned forward with a loud groan and wrapped his arms around his knees. "I'm gonna be sick," he moaned.

Liz laughed and then let out a long sigh. "You were safe?" she asked and Aaron stayed hunched over but he nodded. "It was consensual?"

"Mom, I swear to god—," Aaron groaned.

"Just answer me, Aaron. Let me do the parenting thing for a bit," Liz replied. Aaron exhaled and nodded. "Now, was it a one-time thing or is this real?"

Aaron tapped his fingers against his legs and turned his head to press his cheek to his knees. "It's real, mom. Realer than anything I've ever felt," he said and sat up to put his elbows on his knees. "Look, I know you're worried that I'm going to get my heart broken and go back to the way I was, which is completely a possibility, but he's worth it. He's worth every ounce of pain he could cause me. He's worth every strangled breath and tear."

"Okay," Liz called out loudly as she stood and walked over to sit next to her son to grab his hand. "You have to promise me you will not screw this up."

Aaron laughed and nodded. "Yes mom, I promise," he replied.

Liz smiled and rested her head against her son's shoulder. "So, how was it?"

"Mom!" Aaron yelled in disgust.

"What?" Liz laughed. "Isn't part of a healthy relationship between parents and child to take an interest in their life."

Aaron dragged his hands along his face. "Yeah, but not an interest in that," he groaned.

"Honey, I'm a nurse, I have seen some pretty messed up stuff. I highly doubt your more than likely vanilla first time will make me cringe," Liz explained.

"Oh god. I am actually going to be sick," Aaron said and stood up to retreat back towards his bedroom.

"Next time just make sure to text me so I can go see a movie or something," Liz called out and Aaron groaned before he slammed his door shut.

Kyle made it home before his parents and immediately went up to his room. He could hear Ike's video game clearly through his door before he turned into his room to close his door and collapse onto his bed. He didn't even bother changing, he was too tired. He'd have a shower in the morning to wash away the remnants of the night that clung to his skin, but he couldn't wash away the memories. They were burned into his mind forever.

"Morning!" Kyle said cheerfully to Stan who stood on the sidewalk first.

Stan turned, his eyebrows furrowed together curiously to watch Kyle skip across his lawn. "What is that?" Stan asked.

Kyle turned to face him when he stopped. "What is what?" he asked.

Stan lifted his hand to poke his finger against Kyle's cheek. "That."

"What? My smile?" Kyle asked with a bit of panic on his breath. He had made sure to check himself in the mirror thoroughly for any marks after his shower. Aaron hadn't done any damage, at least externally.

"It's fucking huge. You must have had a good night's sleep," Stan explained.

"The best I've had in a while," Kyle answered.

"You are freaking me out, dude," Stan replied and looked back down at his phone cradled in his hand.

Kyle hummed as they waited for the familiar rumble of Kenny's truck as it sped around the corner. The rock music blared and was muffled. Kenny turned down the music as he screeched to a stop. Kyle flung open the door and slid inside.

"Watch out, something's got Kyle in a really good mood today," Stan warned Kenny as he climbed into the truck.

"What can I not be in a good mood?" Kyle asked as he looked over at Stan and then turned his attention to Kenny. The dirty blonde-haired boy stared back with wide, unblinking eyes. Kyle's smile slowly faded. _"Holy shit, how the fuck does he know?"_

Kenny spat into loud laughter as he smacked his hand against the steering wheel. Stan looked confused once again and Kyle smiled again as he slowly shook his head. "Am I missing something?" Stan asked worriedly.

"I'd say so," Kenny replied and quickly stepped on the gas.

Aaron was standing behind his car. He leaned against it with crossed arms over his chest. He pulled his scarf up to cover his neck from the cold. He couldn't bring himself to wait inside in the warmth. Then heard the rumbling. His head perked up as the truck turned into the parking lot and stopped in an empty spot nearby. His heart was pounding heavily in his chest as he waited. Kenny and Stan stepped out first and then…him. Aaron stopped breathing for a moment. He kept his hands shoved into the pocket of his coat as he waited. The three boys walked over. Kenny was grinning wildly and Kyle was trying to conceal his happiness behind the top of his coat. Stan was staring at his phone, relying on his friends to keep him from running into anything.

"Hey," Aaron greeted all of them simultaneously.

"Morning," Kenny sang cheerfully as he continued to walk by.

Aaron's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. "They're both being weird today," Stan explained without looking up from his phone.

Aaron joined Stan's side to make their way towards the school. The crowd of students filling into the school was heavy. Aaron was following behind Stan when he suddenly felt a hand slid into his pocket to grab his hand. He started to turn his head to see the flash of red before he was being pulled out of the crowd of students. Kyle pulled Aaron along the side of the school and around the corner to a spot where the walls met. Kyle turned to face Aaron and pulled him into a cold kiss. They were still moving. Kyle pressed his back into the corner and Aaron's arm moved to press against the wall to lean against it as his other hand snaked it behind the shorter boy's head. Kyle's hands held on to fists full of the boy's coat. Their bodies pressed against each other to create heat in the cold air.

"I'm sorry about my mom," Aaron finally said when he broke the kiss.

Kyle let go of Aaron's coat to move his hands up to place them against the brunet's cold cheeks. "I'm just happy she's not mad," Kyle explained.

Aaron scoffed. "Well, she's a goddamn lunatic, but I get what you mean," he said with a smile.

Kyle laughed and pulled Aaron back in for another kiss. Cold lips pressed together as warm tongues moved over to lick and warm up the flesh. Kyle's hands left Aaron's cheeks to travel down. His fingers hooked into the loops of Aaron's jeans to pull his lower body closer. The friction made Aaron groan against the kiss.

"Miss me already?" Aaron asked against Kyle's lips.

"From the moment I left last night," Kyle said and Aaron tilted his head forward with a shaky sigh when Kyle's small, nimble hand dove into the front of his pants to wrap cold fingers around his cock.

"Kyle," Aaron said breathily.

"Did you miss me?" Kyle asked with a crooked smile.

Aaron leaned heavily on his arm that was pressed against the wall. "Fuck," he whispered and his fingers threaded in Kyle's hair to pull his head back. Kyle inhaled sharply as his neck was forced to bend backwards and lips pressed to his neck. "Of course I missed you," Aaron said, his breath moving over Kyle's flesh to make the small hairs stand. "I thought of you all night."

Kyle arched forward against Aaron as he continued to slowly stroke the now hard appendage in the boy's pants. Aaron pulled at the top of Kyle's coat. He was wearing sweater that had a high collar. Aaron's lips turned up in a smile. He placed his lips on one spot low on the red head's neck and then bit. The sharp pain made Kyle yelp and buck his hips instinctively. Aaron groaned and moved to sucking on the spot for a moment. The bell attached to the school rang menacingly. Kyle's hand immediately moved from under Aaron's pants as the brunet moved his head away to make sure the red head's collar was hiding the reddened skin.

"Come on," Aaron said as he took a large step back and offered a hand. His smile was formed back on his face again. "Can't have you being late, Mr. Broflovski."

Kyle laughed as he reached out to take the brunet's hand and they walked back towards the doors into the building. "Kenny knows, by the way," Kyle suddenly said.

"About?" Aaron asked with furrowed eyes.

"Us. Last night," Kyle answered.

Aaron's eyebrow lifted quizzically. "You told him?" he asked. It wasn't anger but rather curiosity.

Kyle shook his head. "No, he just knows. He's good at that kind of shit. He's like a bloodhound when it comes to secrets."

Aaron chuckled. They let go once they crossed the threshold into the school and wouldn't touch again until later. They made it through all their classes and lunch acting like nothing was different but the act didn't fool Kenny. He was always grinning. Kyle punched him a few times on the shoulders and arms but it still didn't stop him. After gym, Kyle stood at his open locker as he tried to stretch out the kink that had formed in his shoulder. Stan and Aaron were in the showers, Kenny was on the other side of the wall of lockers trying to convince Butters to hang out with him. Kyle changed into his jeans and t-shirt before he shrugged on his sweater. A hand slammed loudly against the locker next to him. His eyes quickly shot over to look at the thick, sausage fingers. His chest tightened.

"I'm gettin' impatient, Kahl," Cartman drawled.

"Go away, Cartman," Kyle growled.

Cartman moved and grabbed Kyle's arm to spin him around. The red head smacked the fat hand away. Cartman laughed. "Ya got some spunk in ya, Kahl. Some poor sap put some spring in ya step?" he asked and batted Kyle's sweater aside to poke at the mark on his neck Aaron had made that morning and was already bruised.

"It's none of your business, Fatass," Kyle hissed venomously.

"How much did'e pay ya fer that tight lil' ass?" Cartman asked as he leaned in.

Kyle snarled. His hands were clenched at his fists angrily. "Fuck off, Cartman," he growled warningly between clenched teeth.

"I'll pay double whatever he paid ya," Cartman teased with a crooked smile.

"Fuck you, Cartman," Kyle snapped.

Cartman grabbed his wrist tightly. "Well, if ya insist, Kahl," he growled and a hand touched Kyle's thigh.

Kyle snapped. He used all his force to shove Cartman back by his shoulders and a heavy fist connected with the brunet's face. A loud snap echoed through the room and Cartman collapsed backwards on the floor. "You are never gonna touch me again!" Kyle screamed.

"Holy fuck dude," a voice whispered from across the locker room.

Most of the students were gone but there were still a few bystanders who were alerted by the sudden shouting. "You used me. You used my insecurities and vulnerabilities against me, but you won't ever get the chance to do that again," Kyle growled as Cartman held onto his bleeding nose and glared up at the red head. "You don't win. You don't get to decide my happiness you piece of shit!" Kyle screamed. His body was shaking uncontrollably. He was panting heavily but his breath was ripped from him when long arms wrapped around him from behind. The scent of shampoo and familiar cologne instantly calmed Kyle's entire body.

"Shh, it's alright," Aaron whispered as he gently moved Kyle so he was between the red head and Cartman. Aaron leaned down to meet Kyle's glazed eyes and put his hands on the boy's cheeks. "You can stop. You did so well."

"A—Aaron—," Kyle whispered with a shaky voice.

"Fucking fags," Cartman growled. Aaron's eyebrows furrowed in anger and he turned to face the shorter, fatter brunet who was finally picking himself up off the floor. "Ya the one who butt fucked Kahl? How much ya pay fer that?"

"Shut up the hell up, Cartman," Aaron said with a small shake of his head.

"Er what? Ya in love er somethin'?" Cartman asked with a loud bellow.

Aaron stomped forward and towered over Cartman. Kyle moved to take a step but Kenny quickly grabbed his hand as Stan's arm stretched out in front of him. Aaron had the front of Cartman's shirt clutched tightly in his hand.

"You are the one who's a nobody. You will never be loved, Cartman. You're a disturbed human being and no one will ever see past your darkness to be with you," Aaron said and then turned slightly to point towards Kyle. "Him on the other hand? He's gonna move on from you because he has family who loves him, friends who care for him, and me," Aaron growled. Kyle's face warmed up with a light blush. "I love him, and I'm going to love him forever while you live in your misery and loneliness." Aaron gave Cartman a sharp shove back as he let go of his shirt. "Enjoy being alone you son of a bitch."

Aaron quickly spun around and stormed over to grab Kyle's hand. The red head was in shock. His eyes were wide and unblinking as he watched Aaron. He was pulled out of the locker room, leaving the bystanders to their own gossiping whispers as Stan and Kenny stared down Cartman. Kyle quickly followed Aaron. The taller boy's shoulders were tense and he wouldn't stop, wouldn't slow down until they reached Kyle's locker.

"Get your stuff," Aaron growled as he let go of Kyle's hand to keep his back facing the red head.

"Aaron, look at me," Kyle said as he grabbed Aaron's arm.

"Just get your stuff, Kyle. Kenny will take you home," Aaron explained in a harsh tone.

"Wait, what?" Kyle asked and tugged at Aaron's arm. "You're not making any sense. Look at me."

Aaron turned and looked down at Kyle. His left eye held a tear he had been trying to keep hidden. "I'm going to tell the principal what happened before Cartman can. I'll tell her it was me who punched him and take the punishment. Kenny will take you home."

"No, I—," Kyle started to protest.

"Kyle, I'm going to let you get in trouble for this. He got away with what he did to you. I'm not going to let him get away with this," Aaron explained.

"Jesus fuck, come on," Kyle snapped and grabbed Aaron's hand to pull him around the corner and down the small hallway to a dead end of three doors. Each of them was a lab that were rarely ever used. All of them were dark. Kyle opened one to push Aaron inside. He quietly shut the door and kept the lights off. He turned to face Aaron who was standing in the middle of the room with his fingers pushed into his hair. "Aaron, stop," Kyle said as he quickly rushed over to grab Aaron's arms but the brunet moved away from him.

"I saw the look on your face, Kyle," Aaron snapped and startled Kyle. "You looked terrified of me. I don't know what I said, it all just started spilling out. Things I've wanted to say to him since you told me. I kept them deep down. I never wanted to—."

Aaron stopped when Kyle started to laugh. He quickly turned his head to give the red head a confused look. Kyle stepped forward to grab Aaron's hand and looked up at the brunet with a wide smile. "I love him, and I'm going to love him forever while you live in your misery and loneliness," Kyle repeated Aaron's words. Gold eyes widened. "I wasn't terrified of you, I was shocked because you said that," Kyle paused to tug at a thick lock of his hair. "I—I didn't know you felt like that, and then to hear you say it to Cartman first, it made me feel kind of jealous and disappointed."

"I love you, Kyle," Aaron said and the words made Kyle shiver. His smile grew. Aaron stepped into his space and threaded their fingers together. "I should have said it to you first, but I lo—."

"Stop," Kyle said as his hand flew up to cover the brunet's mouth, silencing him. "Unless you want to take me here the middle of the computer lab, don't say it again," he explained and he felt Aaron's mouth turn up into a wide smile under his hand. "I love you too, Aaron. I think I've loved you since the first time I saw you," Kyle said in a low voice and he moved his hand away from Aaron's mouth to touch his warm cheek. "Now, whatever Cartman does, I'll take my punishment, not you. But for now, I want you to take me home."

Aaron nodded slowly and Kyle led the way out of the room to grab their things from their lockers and leave, hand holding hand. There was no need to hide anymore. No doubt the scene in the locker room was already known by half the school. Aaron stopped his car next to the curb and the two boys walked still hand in hand to the front door. Kyle pushed inside and gently shut the door behind them.

"Kyle Broflovski, if that is you young man you are in big trouble!" Kyle's mother yelled from the kitchen. "I just got off the phone with Mrs. Cartman who says you—," he stopped when she reached the doorway between the living room and the kitchen to see Kyle and Aaron standing side by side with their fingers laced together between them.

"Ma, I have to tell you…everything. It's going to hurt you, but I need to tell you and I need you to listen and not say anything until I'm done," Kyle explained with a serious tone that made Sheila closer her mouth and just nod.


	8. Chapter Eight: Sunshine

**Final Chapter boys and girls!**

 **Thank you all for hanging in there and reading my story. I know it wasn't the most exciting, but I hope it was still entertaining enough.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter Eight**

Kyle told his mother everything at the kitchen table. He sat next to her, holding her hand as Aaron silently sat at the end of the table. Sheila hung on to every word her son said starting from the party and ending with the confrontation in the locker room. He admitted to punching Cartman which resulted in his broken nose but any anger that was boiling Sheila's blood was long gone at the beginning of the story. When Kyle was done talking, he held his mother's hand tightly as he let the silence linger. She was thinking hard, trying to comprehend all the new information in her head.

"Why didn't you tell me any of this before, Bubbie?" Sheila asked in a small, sad voice.

Kyle formed a small smile. "It was too hard, ma," he answered and his smile grew a bit. "Plus, I knew if I told you, you'd go off on a rampage and have him locked away for the rest of his life."

Sheila laughed lightly and slowly nodded. "You're damn right I would have."

"And I didn't want that," Kyle replied and lifted his other hand to put it on the back of the hand he was already holding. "I didn't want to be the centre of everyone's attention. I didn't want to be centred out, put on display, and gawked at. I just wanted to forget."

"Oh Kyle," Sheila said as she lifted her free hand to place it on her son's cheek.

"I'm alright, ma. I promise, I'm better than I've been in a while," Kyle explained and turned his head to look at Aaron who straightened in his seat having been acknowledged for the first time since they sat down.

"And this?" Sheila asked. Kyle smiled and turned his head back to face his mother. She was looking at Aaron before she turned her attention back to her son.

"I love him, ma," Kyle said and Aaron tilted his head down slightly as he smiled wide. "I know it's not easy and I understand if you have problems with it."

"Kyle, I don't care who you love, as long as they are good and honest and will take care of you," Sheila explained and looked back at Aaron with a small smile. "Aaron's a good boy. I don't think I'd be happier with any other choice," she said and looked back at her son who was smiling wide enough to make his cheeks puff up. "And don't you worry about Eric Cartman. I'm going to talk with his mother later, just the two of us, and we will settle all of this."

Kyle quickly leaned over to kiss his mother on the cheek. "Thanks ma," he said and let go of her hands to stand. "We need to study. Is it alright if we go upstairs?"

Sheila grinned. "As long as you keep the door open, Bubbie," she said and Kyle nodded. He walked around behind Aaron to gently touch his shoulder.

The tall brunet stood to follow him towards the doorway but stopped and his hand clapped against Kyle's as he grabbed him to stop him. Kyle turned with a lifted eyebrow. "Hang on," Aaron said and then turned to face Sheila who was standing and brushing her skirt with her hands.

"Mrs. Broflovski—," Aaron started to say.

"Aaron, you can still call me Sheila. Nothing has changed here," Kyle's mother said with a smile.

Aaron nodded in understanding. "Sheila, I don't know if this is going to overstep some new, unspoken boundaries but I was wondering if Kyle could come with me to Boulder this weekend," he explained.

Sheila's expression was full of curiosity. She looked past Aaron to her son who gave her soft, pleading eyes. The red headed woman smiled. "Well, I don't see why not. As long as you're back by Sunday night," she said and Kyle bounced happily. Aaron smiled and nodded. His hand was suddenly grabbed and he was pulled quickly out of the room as Kyle called a series of byes and love yous over his shoulder to his mother.

The boys ran up the stairs with their bags to duck into Kyle's room. The red head let go to throw his bag onto the bed and he began to pace. A wide, awe struck smile was formed on his face. "I can't believe I told her. I feel amazing. I feel invincible."

Kyle turned his attention to Aaron who stood just within the doorway. Kyle's footsteps moved with soft thumps across the carpeted floor as he walked over to press against Aaron, lips to lips and chest to chest. Aaron smiled against the sudden kiss and when Kyle's hands travelled a little too far down, the brunet quickly disconnected.

"Okay, you're not that invincible. And neither am I against your mother if she catches us," Aaron explained and Kyle hummed as he wrapped his arms around the taller boy's neck. "I mean it, Kyle."

"We could always go to your place," Kyle said with a wide smile.

"You're addicted, kid," Aaron explained as he ran his fingers through Kyle's curly hair.

Kyle lightly smacked the back of Aaron's head. "Don't call me kid," he said and Aaron smacked Kyle's ass before he pulled away from the contact.

"Alright babe, let's start studying," he said and stepped around Kyle to walk over to the desk chair.

"I like that," Kyle said as he spun around.

Aaron set his bag down on the chair to fish out his books. "Like what?" he asked when he turned back to face the red head.

"When you call me that. I like it," Kyle said with a smile.

Aaron mirrored Kyle's smile. "I'll keep that in mind," he said and turned to open the top drawer of Kyle's desk. "I need a pencil. You got one?"

"Bottom drawer," Kyle replied and walked over to the bed to open his bag.

Aaron slid open the bottom drawer and let out a soft chuckle. Kyle turned his head to see Aaron pull out the lime green ushanka from the drawer. The sight of his childhood hat made the tops of his cheeks turn a slight pink colour. "Why have I never seen this before?" Aaron asked as he patted the fabric off.

"I used to wear it all the time as a kid. Haven't worn it in years. I don't know if it even fits," Kyle explained.

Aaron hummed as he stepped up to Kyle and slid the hat over his head. His hair wasn't nearly as uncontrollable as it was when he was younger so the hat actually fit snuggly. Aaron beamed. "Beautiful. It suits you. Don't know why you'd stop wearing it. It's like it completes you," Aaron explained and Kyle's small blush spread. "I like it."

School was awkward, to say the least, the next day. It started with Stan who stepped up next to Kyle wearing his ushanka while waiting for Kenny. Kyle and Aaron had agreed not to show up to school together. Kyle wanted to talk to his two friends alone.

"Kyle," Stan said in a low voice. Kyle lowered his head to look at the ground. Stan suddenly punched Kyle's shoulder and the red head looked over with furrowed eyebrows. "That was a wicked swing! Snapped Cartman's nose in half. It was awesome!"

Kyle blinked. "Stan?" he said as the raven-haired boy laughed.

"The look on Cartman's face at the end was priceless. I've never seen him so broken before. When Aaron called him a son of a bitch, I almost lost it," Stan explained and slapped Kyle's back harshly. "Are you okay? I'm surprised you didn't hurt your hand."

Kyle looked down at his gloved hand. He noticed when he woke that his knuckles were slightly bruised and his wrist had an ache to it, but it wasn't bad. He smiled and let out a soft chuckle. "I'm—," he stopped and looked back over at his friend. "I'm great, Stan."

The taller boy sighed and shoved his hands into the pockets of his coat. "He said he loves you," Stan pointed out and Kyle hummed lightly. "You love him back?" Kyle lowered his head and nodded slowly. Stan scoffed. "Gay."

Kyle turned his head to glare at his friend. "Shut up, dude!" he yelled.

Stan laughed at his friend's reaction. "I'm kidding. You two are good together. If he makes you happy, it doesn't matter if he's a guy. Love who you love. That's all that matters," Stan explained and Kyle gently bumped their shoulders.

Kenny stopped the truck a few minutes later. Kyle opened the passenger side door and Kenny looked at him with a half smile. "The hell are you wearing?" he asked as Kyle climbed into the cab.

"What? It's my hat," Kyle answered as Kenny gently tugged on the ear flap closest to him.

"I know, I thought you threw it out. It's just shocking to see it," Kenny explained. Stan shut the door and leaned his elbow against it as he looked over at his friend.

"You know, I think I'm still so used to it that I didn't even realize you were wearing it. That's fucking weird," Stan said and laughed.

"All you need is to pull out your toque, Stanley," Kenny said.

Stan snorted. "That thing's long gone."

Everything was normal and it made Kyle sigh in relief. School was not so forgiving. Judging eyes clung to Kyle as he moved down the hall between his two friends. He suddenly had a new appreciation for Craig and Tweek when they went through the whole thing back in elementary school. Kyle kept his head down and moved to his locker without meeting anyone's gaze.

"People are staring," Aaron said from the other side of Kyle's locker door.

"Well, we gave them a reason," Kyle said as she shuffled through his bag.

"Not yet," Aaron said and Kyle turned his head with a confused look on his face.

Aaron grabbed the sides of Kyle's hat to keep him still as he kissed him. Kyle froze. The kiss lit sparks across his lips like it did every time but he was painfully aware of just where they were. A girl giggled down the hall from behind Kyle and Aaron moved away to gently run his thumbs over the red head's cheeks.

"Try not to blush too hard, babe," Aaron teased and reached into Kyle's locker to grab his Algebra books from his bag. "Come on, we don't want to be late."

Kyle was paralysed as Aaron stepped around him to head to the classroom. Too many thoughts reeled through his mind at once as the judging eyes finally turned away. He finally managed to move and spun around to see Aaron give him a wide smile before he ducked into the room.

" _I'm completely in love with a bright eyed lunatic and he's the most amazing person I've ever met."_

Kyle was jittery all Friday night. He finished his homework so he wouldn't have to worry about it later, packed a bag with a change of clothes, and settled into bed early.

"I'll pick you up tomorrow morning at ten. Don't sleep in," Aaron said as he pulled up next to the curb in front of Kyle's house.

"Why are you taking me to Boulder?" Kyle couldn't help but ask even though Aaron had told him before that it was a surprise.

"You just can't leave it, can you?" Aaron asked with a grin and sighed. "I want you to meet something. That's all you get to know. Now get out of my car and go get ready."

Kyle laughed as Aaron gently pushed him to get out. Kyle buried himself in his mattress as he wished himself to sleep. It took him a while to finally be lulled to sleep and woke to the light tapping of a manicured finger against his cheek.

"Kyle, sweetie, wake up," his mother sang and he let out a low groan. "Honey, it's ten o'clock and your ride is here."

"Hmm?" Kyle moaned.

"Aaron is waiting downstairs," Sheila said and Kyle's eyes quickly opened to see her smiling face.

"Ah, he told me not to sleep in," Kyle said as he quickly scrambled to his feet to shuffle through his closet.

"I'll let him know you're coming," Sheila said and stepped out of the room to close the door behind her.

Kyle quickly threw on a pair of jeans, a t-shirt, and a collared shirt. He grabbed his bag he had left on his computer chair and his hat to slide it onto his head. His footsteps thumped down the stairs and he stopped at the bottom. Aaron was standing by the door. He wore black jeans, high top sneakers, and his large blue coat. His face twisted up into a smile when he saw Kyle.

"You ready to go?" Aaron asked and Kyle nodded frantically.

"Keep your phone charged and on you at all times, Bubbie," Sheila said as Kyle quickly slid on his shoes.

"Yeah ma," Kyle replied with a roll of his eyes.

"And you keep my baby safe, Mr. Carmichael," Sheila turned her attention to Aaron to say.

"Of course, Mrs. Broflovski," Aaron replied.

Kyle threw on his coat and reached behind Aaron to open the door. "See you tomorrow ma. Love you," he said and pushed Aaron out of the house before he stepped out and closed the door behind him.

"You slept in," Aaron said as he walked across lawn.

Kyle quickly followed him. "I may have forgotten to set an alarm last night," he admitted as Aaron opened the passenger side door to lean against it.

"Good thing I'm such a good boyfriend than," Aaron said and Kyle tilted his head slightly before Aaron turned away to walk around the car. Kyle sat in the passenger seat and shut the door. Aaron slid into the driver's seat and after he shut the door he reached back behind the seat to pull forward a takeout bag from Tweak's Coffeehouse. Aaron dropped the bag onto Kyle's lap and then picked up one of the take-out cups from the cup holder between them. "French vanilla."

Kyle took the warm cup to hold it in his hands. He stared at the raised lid for a moment before he turned his head to look over at Aaron. "I love you," he said and Aaron smiled as he started the car to pull away. Kyle noticed the strange reaction from Aaron but didn't comment on it. He took a small sip from his drink before he set it down in the holder and then opened the bag. The sharp gasp he made startled Aaron.

"What's wrong?" Aaron asked worriedly.

"You got me a panini," Kyle whispered as he pulled the food from the bag. "I lo—," he stopped himself and exhaled. "Thank you."

Aaron's hand tightened around the steering wheel. There was something wrong. It was looming in the air above their heads like an annoying fly buzzing. It made the drive tense but not impossible. Aaron was still talkative but his smiles were small and short and he made little to no jokes. They arrived in Boulder at noon and Aaron went silent. Kyle could see the tension in the boy's shoulders and back. The car pulled up to a line of thick threes with a fence along the outside of them. Kyle couldn't make out what was on the other side.

"We're here. Come on," Aaron said as he stepped out of the car.

"Where is here?" Kyle muttered to himself and stepped out.

Aaron's shoulders were shrugged as his hands were shoved into his pockets. He started to walk along the narrow path along the fence and Kyle quickly followed him. The fence curved and then ended at a high archway made of steel. Kyle stopped to read the writing on the archway. _High Ridge Cemetery_. Kyle stopped breathing for a second. Aaron passed through the archway and Kyle took a step forward.

"Aaron," Kyle called out and the brunet stopped.

Aaron slowly turned and Kyle could see the worry and pain in the taller boy's expression. A cold breeze passed through, wrapping around the two boys as Aaron stretched his arm out to hold his hand towards Kyle.

"Come on," Aaron said and Kyle quickly walked forward to take his hand. Kyle didn't speak, he just walked along beside the boy until he stopped. They were standing a few feet in front of a gravestone, _Damian Bartholomew Carmichael: Devoted husband, loving father, hero to all_ , was etched into the stone. Kyle let Aaron go so the brunet boy could walk forward and crouch in front of the stone. "Hey dad," he said in a low voice that wavered with nerves. "I know it's been a while. I'm sorry about that." Kyle listened with pain as Aaron spoke to his father through the beacon that was his headstone. Aaron lowered his head and Kyle could see his shoulders shake. "I want you to meet someone. Someone very important to me," Aaron said and placed his hand on the smooth stone. "His name is Kyle. Dad, I'm absolutely in love with him." Kyle had to swallow his heart that leapt into his throat. "You'd like him, after you'd be finished absolutely hating him." Kyle lowered his head with a small chuckle. "He's challenging. He would put your on your ass in a heartbeat. Mom always said I needed to get someone who would put you in your place. I sure as hell found him."

"Hey," Kyle said with an offended tone.

Aaron turned his head and Kyle spotted the familiar edge of his smile. "I wish you could meet him," Aaron returned to speaking to the headstone. Footsteps shuffled from behind him and he looked over as Kyle stepped up to crouch and put his hand on the stone.

"Hi, Mr. Carmichael," Kyle said to the stone and Aaron's eyes widened before he smiled and tilted his head slightly. "I'm Kyle, the one who'd put you on your ass, apparently," Kyle said and chuckled quietly. "I'm also the one who's in love with your son and with your blessing, I'd like to keep loving him. Probably forever, unless he turns into a drug addict or a stripper or something." Aaron laughed and Kyle chuckled. "I wish I could have met you. Your son's amazing. Your wife is unlike anyone I've ever met before. I could only imagine how awesome you would have been," Kyle said and traced his finger over the indent of Damian's name. "You don't have to worry. I'll watch over them both for you."

Aaron reached out to grab Kyle's hand and gently squeezed. "Kyle," the brunet said in a low voice. Kyle turned his head and Aaron leaned forward to grab his chin as he kissed him. "Thank you," Aaron whispered against Kyle's face.

"You were quiet the entire drive. I wish you told me what we were doing," Kyle explained as Aaron's hand moved to touch his cheek.

"I'm sorry," Aaron said in a low voice. "I—I haven't been here since the funeral. I was too angry and then ashamed to come. I could never figure out what I wanted to say to him. Then when you were telling your mom everything, even everything about me, I just knew I had to tell him about you. I had to be here with you."

"I'm glad you brought me here," Kyle explained.

Aaron stood and pulled on Kyle's hand to lift him to his feet. "I've got one more place we have to go before dinner," Aaron said and he seemed brighter than before.

"Dinner?" Kyle asked.

Aaron smiled. "Don't worry babe, I got you covered," he said and then turned back to the run his hand over the top of the smooth stone. "I love you dad," he said and then changed his attention to Kyle. "I love you too." Kyle grinned against the kiss that Aaron leaned forward to place on his lips. "Come on."

Aaron started to lead Kyle away so the red head turned his head to shout back, "Bye, Mr. Carmichael. Don't worry, I'll take good care of him."

Kyle's back was pressed against the side of Aaron's car as the brunet leaned against him to kiss him. Aaron's hand moved up the side of the red head's face to remove the lime green hat and so he could run his fingers through the messy locks. Kyle smiled as Aaron's fingertips worked against his scalp. The green hat fell back against the top of the car and Kyle laughed as he threw his arms around Aaron's neck so their forehead's pressed together.

"My ears are cold," Kyle said and Aaron reached behind him to grab the hat and nestle it on his head again.

"Sorry, got a little carried away," Aaron said and then reached over to grab the passenger side door to open it. "Ready for the next bit of our adventure?"

"Fuck yeah I am," Kyle said excitedly and quickly scrambled into the car.

Aaron was driving the car to the edge of the city where buildings became smaller and more spaced out. The car turned onto a long dirt driveway that led to a ranch house and acres of rolling fields that stretched to tall trees and tall mountains. Aaron stopped the car near the large barn to turn it off and reach into the centre console to grab something Kyle didn't see before he shoved it into the pocket of his jeans.

"Stop looking so nervous," Aaron said as he reached over to give Kyle's knee a tight squeeze. "Trust me."

Kyle quickly turned his head with a crooked grin. "Of course I trust you."

"Good, then let's go." Aaron stood next to the car to look back towards the house. He waved to an older gentleman standing at a window who nodded his head and then turned away. Aaron turned to see the confused look on Kyle's face. "Old friend of my dad's. Come on."

Kyle followed Aaron across the fields along the long fences where cattle grazed. Kyle was both confused and excited at the same time. A tall tree sat at the top of a steep hill that dipped down before the land continued to the mountains. Aaron stopped at the base of the tree and looked up.

"How's your climbing skills?" he asked while looking up at the branch a few feet above his head.

"I'm not sure. I don't spend a whole lot of time climbing things, unless they look like you," Kyle said.

Aaron quickly snapped his head around to give Kyle a strange look. He started to laugh and Kyle's cheeks reddened slightly. "Did you really just say that?" Aaron asked.

Kyle smiled back. "I have a few good ones occasionally," he replied and then stepped up towards the tree to grab a branch and hoist himself up.

It was a short climb before Aaron stopped and held his hand out to Kyle to help him up onto the branch he was perched on. Kyle turned his attention to the trunk where a heart had been carved into the bark with _D+E_ inside it. Kyle grinned.

"Damian and Elizabeth," he said and turned his head to smile wider at Aaron. "Your parents."

Aaron nodded. "My dad carved this when they were in high school, just after they started dating," he explained.

Kyle lightly bumped his shoulder against Aaron's. "A real sap just like his son," he teased.

"Hey, I'm not a sap. I'm a stone-cold bastard," Aaron said and laughed at himself. He reached into the pocket of his jeans to pull out the object he had grabbed from the centre console of his car. The sharp blade of the knife flipped open, startling Kyle. The red head jerked back and lost his balance. Aaron quickly wrapped an arm around him to keep him steady. "Steady there. Don't need you falling for me twice," he joked.

"Cheesy," Kyle said as he hit Aaron's chest.

Kyle sat on a higher branch as he watched Aaron carve into the tree next to where his father had done it years ago. It was such a weird feeling that formed in Kyle's stomach. He couldn't help but watch Aaron's face as he focused hard on the lines he made with his small knife. Everything about the brunet's face was perfect. His strong jawline, sharp nose, and high cheekbones were illuminated by the sun's light that peaked through the tree's thick leaves. He had his bottom lip griped between his teeth in concentration. Kyle quickly realized the mannerism whenever Aaron was thinking, reading, or doing his homework. It always made Kyle's chest tighten. It was adorable.

"You're staring," Aaron mentioned as he started to work on engraving the K.

"How else do you appreciate a perfect piece of art?" Kyle asked with a wide grin.

Aaron laughed. "Oh, come on, you call me cheesy?" he shouted and Kyle leaned forward to kiss the taller boy on the cheek.

"Try not to blush too hard, darling," he said and Aaron stopped digging into the tree. His nose scrunched up as he hummed quietly. "No?" Aaron shook his head. "Sugar?" Aaron gagged jokingly. "Sweetie?"

"My mom calls me that," Aaron said and dug the knife into the tree again.

Kyle laughed. "Alright, give me some time, I'll think of something," he replied.

Aaron dug one final time and then leaned back. He retracted the blade of his knife before he shoved it into his pocket. "There!" Aaron said loudly and his smile stretched across his face. "Now it's official. Together for as long as this tree stands, no matter what happens."

Kyle smiled gently but there was something wrong with Aaron's tone during the last part of his sentence. _No matter what happens_. They had only been together for a few days and he was already worried about breaking up? Kyle's eyebrows furrowed together at the thought until it hit him. It wasn't a break up he was worried about.

Kyle grabbed Aaron's hand and slid off the branch to stand with his back pressed against the trunk. "Aaron, you need to listen to me," Kyle said as he squeezed Aaron's hand. "I'm not going anywhere, so stop worrying," he explained and Aaron exhaled through his nose. "I'm here. You've got me."

Aaron stepped into Kyle's space to kiss him. "And I'm not letting you go."

Dinner was at a restaurant Kyle felt a little underdressed for but Aaron assured him it would be fine. Kyle felt uncomfortable in the setting, alone in a restaurant with Aaron. It was their first date, officially. Kyle felt a foot press on top of his as he was looking at the menu. He looked up and Aaron smiled at him from across the table.

"You look nervous," Aaron said and Kyle grabbed his menu to lift it in front of his face.

"I've never been on a date before, let alone being on one with a guy. We probably stick out like a—," Kyle stopped when Aaron moved his foot up along the inside of the red head's leg to gently press against his crotch. "Aaron," Kyle said breathlessly between clenched teeth.

"Relax, stop thinking about everything else and just focus on me," Aaron explained.

Kyle lowered his menu to lay it back on the table. "It's a little hard to focus on anything else right now," he snapped.

Aaron let out a low chuckle and lowered his foot. Kyle was hard throughout dinner. He hated the fact that while he was struggling to keep his focus on a conversation without thinking about the staring eyes or hard appendage in his jeans, Aaron was completely normal. And there was also the waitress. She was bright eyed and smiley and completely focused on Aaron. Kyle noted how pretty she was. She had bright blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes surrounded by dark makeup that only enhanced the colour. Aaron had his regular smile as he spoke to the girl. With every contact she made against his shoulder with her hand, Kyle noticed the corner of Aaron's mouth would twitch a bit. Fire burned in the pit of Kyle's stomach. It took him a moment to realize what the feeling was. Jealousy.

The door to their hotel room beeped as Aaron removed the card given to them by the front desk. The woman behind the counter gave Aaron and Kyle a curious look that Aaron just smiled at before he grabbed Kyle's hand to drag him to the elevator. He hummed the entire way up to the sixth floor and pushed open the door to the room. Immediately to the right was the bathroom and then the room opened with two double beds, a long dresser underneath a mounted television, and at the end of the room was a table with two chairs in front of the sliding doors to the porch outside.

"Two beds?" Kyle asked while standing next to Aaron looking at the modern style room.

"I didn't want to assume anything," Aaron replied as he shrugged his shoulders.

Kyle rolled his eyes. He dropped his bag on the floor and started moving furniture around as Aaron watched with a curious tilt of his head. Kyle finished shoving the beds together and moving the blankets and pillows to simulate one giant bed. He turned with a smile and Aaron ran his fingers through his hair with a chuckle.

"Mega bed," Kyle said as he gestured towards his creation.

Aaron laughed. Kyle removed his hat and coat to toss them on top of the long dresser before he stormed over to grab the front of Aaron's coat. "What are—?" Aaron started to ask but Kyle tugged him forward roughly. Aaron's bag dropped to the floor as he was shoved back to sit on the bed with a grunt. Kyle straddled his lap and his hands went on the red head's hips. "Someone's feeling frisky," Aaron teased.

Kyle was unzipping the brunet's coat to slide it off his shoulders. The fabric rustled as it was tossed back on the floor. "You're the one who started it," Kyle replied and grabbed the bottom of Aaron's shirt to pull it off over his head.

"You were the one getting jealous of the waitress," Aaron said and the grin that formed on his face was cocky and made Kyle blush.

"You—You noticed?" Kyle asked.

Aaron sat up straighter so their chests pressed against each other and his hands moved under the red head's shirt just above his jeans. "It was hard to miss. Plus, I must admit," Aaron explained and lifted his hands to start to unbutton the collared shirt, "it was a huge turn on."

"You were doing it on purpose?" Kyle snapped. Aaron stopped at the second button and made a face as he stared down at the shirt in front of him. Kyle's eyebrows quirked in confusion. A mischievous smile formed on the brunet's face and he reached up to grab the shirt with both hands to rip it open. "Hey! What the—?" Kyle started to yell.

"Sorry, not enough time," Aaron said and pulled Kyle forward to latch onto his neck with hungry lips.

Kyle let out a soft sigh at the contact and the two boys collapsed onto the bed in a tangle of limbs. Clothes were removed. Hands roamed over exposed flesh, touching sensitive areas to earn light gasps and low groans. Lips created warm sparks over chilled skin. They only disconnected when Aaron had to shuffle through his bag to find the condoms and bottle of lube inside.

"Didn't want to assume anything, huh?" Kyle asked with an arched eyebrow.

"Hey, it's good to be prepared just in case," Aaron said and set the items aside as he crawled back over Kyle to run nimble fingers over the red head's throbbing, leaking dick. Kyle threw his head back with a soft cry. "Besides, if I didn't bring them, we wouldn't be able to have the fun we're about to have."

"We would have," Kyle said with a shaky breath and licked his lips. "We would have just made more of a mess."

Aaron was deafened momentarily by the sound of his heart pounding in his ears. "Fuck," he breathed.

Kyle breathed heavily as he rolled his hips on top of Aaron. The brunet's hands started at Kyle's shoulders but moved down his back to grip his boney hips in a bruising hold. Kyle's hands laid flat against Aaron's chest as he carefully pushed the brunet onto his back. Hips rolled in a fast, steady rhythm from both boys. Kyle's head fell forward, red locks in his sweat covered face.

"Fuck, Kyle," Aaron groaned, the back of his head pressed hard into his mattress as he reached out to wrap long fingers around Kyle's neglected cock.

Kyle's thighs started to quake under his weight. The added pleasure was sending him dangerously close to the edge. "Ah, A—Aaron!" Kyle cried out and both boys climaxed simultaneously.

The large bed was useless as the two boys tangled themselves in each other's limbs, pressed together as close as they could be. Kyle pressed his face to Aaron's chest, drinking in the scent of his cologne and natural scent.

"Kyle?" Aaron said and Kyle hummed tiredly. "I love you, babe."

"I love you too," Kyle whispered back into the soft skin of the brunet's chest.

He really did love him. It was unlike anything he had ever felt before. There were a few small crushes on some girls in his classes through the years, even a terrifying moment when he started to look at Stan a little too long in the locker room, but there was never anything like this. Kyle wanted everything that had to do with Aaron. He wanted his warmth, his soft skin, and his scent. He wanted to protect him and make him smile and make him laugh. He never wanted to leave the boy's arms. Never.

* * *

Kyle woke to the warm sun tickling his face. He was rolled towards the large windows that looked out to the balcony as the bright rising sun trickled into the room. It lit up the cream coloured walls and warded off the cold from outside. Kyle slowly rolled over onto his other side and smiled. Aaron was on his stomach, his face buried into the mountain of pillows. The sunlight touched over his exposed back and his hair, giving the chestnut locks a yellow tint. Kyle reached his hand out to push his fingers into the soft hair and his smile widened.

"Sunshine," he said in a low voice.

Aaron groaned and shifted. He turned his head to face Kyle and the sun streaked across his tired face. "What?" he said in a groggy voice.

"Good morning, my Sunshine," Kyle said in a soft voice.

Aaron smiled brighter than the light that touched his face. He rolled his body to reach his hands out to grab Kyle and pull him against his chest. "I like it, it's perfect," Aaron whispered and kissed Kyle on the forehead. "You're perfect."

* * *

 **Please, review and like this story if it suits you!**

 **And take a look at my other story(ies) if you please.**

 **Love you all! :)**


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